DALLAS — As airlines scramble to secure supplies of green fuel in advance of 2030 targets, British low-cost leisure airline Jet2.com (LS) announced it has invested significantly in the Fulcrum NorthPoint BioEnergy facility in northern England for the production of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).

Airlines all over the world are counting on SAF, which uses waste materials like cooking oils to lower emissions by up to 80% compared to fossil fuels, to decarbonize flying before new electric and hydrogen-powered technology choices are anticipated in 2035.

In an effort to jumpstart a market for green fuels and start reducing the carbon emissions from the aviation sector, the EU agreed on April 26, 2023, to set SAF binding targets for airlines in Europe to boost their usage of sustainable aviation fuels.

Britain, for its part, has stated that it would enact a SAF mandate in 2025 mandating that by 2030, at least 10% of jet fuel must be sustainable.

Additionally, as part of her initiative, the British Department of Transport has provided grants totaling £165m (US$205.46m) to companies building SAF plants. Airlines and SAF manufacturers want the government to provide support, though, and quickly.

According to Jonathon Counsell, global head of sustainability at IAG, "The big message is we just need to do this more quickly."

Less than 1% of current jet fuel consumption is attributable to SAF. It is produced from waste oils, and it costs three times as much as standard jet fuel, while alternative forms produced from green hydrogen may be more expensive.

Featured image: Jet2 G-GDFD Boeing 737-800. Photo: Iain Marshall/Airways