In Pictures: How UAE’s Emirates, Etihad are speeding up airline industry’s transition to green fuels

How soon can all of the world’s airlines take to flying using only Sustainable Aviation Fuel? It will not be an easy journey to accomplish, and there are costs involved – but it’s one trip the aviation industry needs to get right.

Last week Emirates became the world’s first airline to complete an Airbus A380 demonstration flight using 100 per cent SAF.

And earlier this year, the Dubai entity became the first passenger airline to operate one of the two GE engines on a Boeing 777-300 aircraft with 100 per cent SAF.

However, getting this green fuel in sufficient capacities and at reasonable cost of production still represents a major challenge. Some aviation industry experts predict SAF will only account for 65 per cent of airline fuel use by 2050.

Another roadblock is the high cost associated with SAF. The International Air Transport Association has said SAF will likely stay more expensive than kerosene even when large-scale production begins. SAF is three to five times costlier than traditional jet fuel, but any increase in production volumes could help.

That would be the point when sustainable aviation fuel goes mainstream and play its part in helping the aviation industry reach its target of cutting emissions to 50 per cent of 2005 levels by 2050.

The UAE is actively pursuing global leadership in using Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) ahead of the 2050 net-zero targets.

SAF is made from a renewable hydrocarbon-based source, which can reduce carbon emissions by 75 per cent compared to traditional fossil-based jet fuel.

In 2019, Etihad Airways was the world’s first to fly a passenger flight using sustainable fuel from Salicornia, which grows in saltwater. The Abu Dhabi carrier aims to achieve a 20 per cent reduction in emissions by 2025 and zero net carbon emissions by 2050.

Etihad and Emirates are providing data to demonstrate use of higher blends of SAF, which now stands at up to 50 per cent with conventional jet fuel.

Clean energy companies like Neste are racing to ensure UAE carriers have the SAF supply they need to fuel airline operations. Neste aims to ramp up its production of renewable fuels to over 6 million tonnes by 2026 from 4.5 million this year, 33 per cent of which will be SAF.

The UAE recently launched the ‘Air-CRAFT’ initiative, which will be a research consortium focused on developing, producing, and scaling up use for SAF technologies. Air-CRAFT will bring together entities across the value chain, including policymakers, aviation regulators, fuel producers, and airline operators to make SAF readily available.

The UAE’s roadmap for SAF is simple – Procure 700 million litres of SAF by 2030, accelerate its deployment, and develop a national regulatory environment.

Between now and then, all energies will be out to use to make SAF-fuelled flights full commercial reality.