Sustainable aviation fuels in Australia boosted by multi-million dollar deal with Qantas airline
Author: Jill Pole with Reuters
The agreement, announced on the sidelines of global airline industry body IATA's annual meeting in Doha, Qatar, is in line with Qantas' target of using 10 per cent SAF in its fuel mix by 2030. It comes after the airline placed a multi-billion dollar order for Airbus 'narrowbody' and 'widebody' planes last month. The global airline industry, aiming to reach net zero emissions by 2050, is relying on SAF usage to rise from around 100 million litres (26 million gallons) a year in 2021 to at least 449 billion litres a year within three decades - a mammoth and costly undertaking. Qantas is sourcing SAF in London and Los Angeles but not in Australia. "The problem is there is no sustainable aviation fuel industry in Australia and we would like to buy this in scale," Qantas Chief Executive Alan Joyce told repors. "We think the way to do that is to put our money where our mouth is." The investment, which includes A$50 million (€33 million) of funding previously committed by Qantas, could go to a mix of start-up firms and more established operators and could include equity investments, Joyce said.