Airbus and Neste have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to advance the production and uptake of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) in their aligned vision to reduce greenhouse gas emissions of air travel.
This collaboration aims to lay the foundation and accelerate the aviation sector’s transition to SAF, and allow Neste and Airbus to explore business opportunities together and jointly promote the production and use of sustainable aviation fuel.
The focus will be on the technical development of SAF, fuel approval and testing of current and future production technologies, and investigating how 100 per cent SAF use can be enabled.
This is the second collaboration between Airbus and the energy provider Neste after the Emission and Climate Impact of Alternative Fuels exploration on SAF with German research centre DLR.
“SAF is one of aerospace’s most promising decarbonisation solutions that can be used in both in-service aircraft fleets and those of tomorrow,” said Julie Kitcher, executive vice president, communications and corporate affairs, Airbus. “All Airbus aircraft are already certified for flying with up to 50 per cent SAF and this partnership will be instrumental to reaching certification for up to 100 per cent SAF before the end of the decade.”
Thorsten Lange, executive vice president, renewable aviation at Neste said: “The combined knowledge and expertise of the companies will help advance the use and availability of SAF as a means of transitioning aviation towards more sustainable energy sources and reducing the climate impact of aviation.”
Besides working on the technical aspects, Neste and Airbus will investigate concrete SAF projects and business opportunities across the world with airlines and other stakeholders.
