Mandatory Blended Jet Fuel Likely by 2025

Apr. 20—The government is considering issuing a directive mandating airlines to use blended sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) by 2025.

"We have put together an advisory saying we will look at 1% blending of sustainable aviation fuel by 2025, 2% by 2026, and 5% by 2030," Union civil aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said. Sustainable aviation fuel shares some properties with traditional jet fuel but reduces carbon emissions. "The technology is here. It is a proven technology that can be used by aircraft to fly."

However, the concept is still new for Indian airlines and, so far, blended sustainable aviation fuel was used only for a few demonstration flights. In 2018, SpiceJet operated such a flight for the first time, blending 75% aviation turbine fuel with 25% biojet fuel produced from the jatropha plant.

In December 2021, IndiGo signed a pact with Dehradun-based Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Indian Institute of Petroleum (CSIRIIP) to produce and use SAF globally. In February 2022, the airline took delivery of an aircraft, which runs on sustainable aviation fuel. Airlines owned by the Tata group signed a memorandum of understanding with CSIR — IIP in September 2022 to collaborate on research, development and deployment of sustainable aviation fuels.

Full-service carrier Vistara operated a wide-body aircraft on sustainable aviation fuel on a long-haul route from South Carolina to Delhi in partnership with The Boeing C. and GE Aerospace by using a blend of 30% SAF with 70% conventional jet fuel. The airline cut almost 150,000 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions over the fuel's life cycle.

"The problem with sustainable aviation fuel worldwide is producing enough quantity, and logistically speaking ferrying SAF from the production unit to a bowser that goes into the aircraft. The two pieces of the puzzle has to be resolved," Scindia said. "For 5% (blending) we require 0.7 MM of production of SAF and India has a total production capacity of 12 MM tonnes. We as an industry require hardly 5%. The whole issue is production and logistics. We are working with the ministry of petroleum and natural gas. It has set up a bio- ATF (aviation turbine fuel) task force and we are working with them to take this along."

Last September, Mint had reported that the ministries of civil aviation and petroleum are working on laying down a roadmap on the use of sustainable aviation fuel.

As a member of UN aviation agency International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), India is working towards net zero carbon emissions. The first periodic review of Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) was conducted at the 41st International Civil Aviation Organization Assembly in October, where member-states pledged to strive for net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

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