Our thinking

SAF’s the limit

12 July, 2024

We’re all aware of the huge climate impact of flying. But perhaps those most aware are airlines themselves, who are facing regulatory pressures to reduce their carbon footprint by increasing their usage of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) – alternative non-petroleum fuels that reduce emissions from air transportation.  

The challenge is that the current supply of SAF is insufficient to meet growing demand, and, as pointed out last week by British Airways, prohibitively expensive.  

SAF “book and claim” systems have a crucial role to play in this. By decoupling the physical SAF from its environmental attributes, these systems allow airlines to purchase sustainability credits, claiming the benefits of SAF usage without needing to physically use the fuel. This flexibility helps airlines meet regulatory requirements while promoting the overall increase in SAF production – essential to bringing costs down. 

SAF is no silver bullet. It doesn’t completely eliminate emissions from flying, and the cultivation of crops for biofuel has the potential to cause deforestation and loss of biodiversity along with competing pressures with food crops. Furthermore, the energy-intensive processes involved in producing SAF can also contribute to emissions. 

The world needs affordable SAF to achieve climate targets, but it is critical that we scale SAF production responsibly, balancing the need for decarbonisation with the potential environmental impacts. We’ll need more investment in this sector if we’re going to bring the costs of SAF down to earth. 

By Louise Podmore