International Airlines Group (IAG) announced a new Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) purchase agreement with e-SAF producer Infinium, which plans to supply the UK market with power-to-liquid e-SAF from late 2026.
Produced from water, waste CO2 and renewable energy, e-SAF is expected to reduce lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 90% compared to today’s conventional jet fuel.
IAG’s Group Sustainability Officer, Jonathon Counsell said: “So far, we’re on track to deliver our 10% 2030 SAF goal and agreements with innovators like Infinium, are key to reaching this target. Aviation as an industry is working hard to decarbonise and policy should focus on solutions such as SAF, rather than only increasing costs which risk affecting the competitiveness of the European aviation industry. What the industry needs is additional policy support to attract funds to construct SAF plants and reduce aviation’s reliance on fossil fuels.”
Under the terms of the 10 year agreement, Infinium will supply IAG with e-SAF to support any of its five airlines, Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, LEVEL and Vueling. Last year, IAG airlines used approximately 12% of the world’s supply of SAF (Sustainable aviation fuel) .
This deal supports the scale-up of e-SAF, which is manufactured through a process that converts water, waste CO2 and renewable power into fuel. This new class of fuel is not encumbered by feedstock limitations, has a higher degree of emissions reduction versus conventional jet fuel and has a relatively low land and water-use footprint. It is also a ‘drop-in’ replacement for aviation fuel that requires no changes to existing aircraft engine designs.
Image Credit: International Airlines Group (IAG)
Irish Aviation Research Institute © 5 December 2024 All Rights Reserved
