The association anticipates 2.4 million tonnes of SAF will be produced this year, costing airlines $4.3 billion.
SAF is made from bio waste sources like used cooking oil and municipal waste and is expected to play a major role in the decarbonisation of the aviation sector, which in turn will have a major impact on the business events industry, with up to 80 per cent of an event’s emissions coming from air travel.
“It looks to be another disappointing year for SAF production,” said IATA’s director general, Willie Walsh.
“Five years after committing to achieve net zero by 2050, SAF production will only account for 0.8 per cent of airline fuel use this year.
“The path to meeting 65 per cent of our needs in 2050 is growing more difficult with each year of ineffectively sequenced government policies and oil companies’ manifest lack of interest.
“The current energy shock should add even more urgency to the development of renewables, including SAF.
“But we have yet to see either the energy shock, the need to develop energy independence and jobs, or the urgency to mitigate climate change materialise in the incentives needed to create a viable SAF market,” said Walsh.
In Australia, while there have been movements towards local SAF production, including funding from government, airlines and aircraft manufacturers, large-scale SAF production has yet to become reality.
In order to significantly boost SAF production, IATA wants to see renewable energy supply expanded to support SAF production, alongside making enough biofuel feedstocks available, while also calling for open access to fuel infrastructure, better policy support for investment in and development of SAF production, and the creation of a global SAF market with sufficient supply and access regardless of geography.
