New measures to help the UK take off as a global leader in sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) support the growth of industries and jobs across the country, and were introduced in Parliament today.
Sustainable aviation fuels are an alternative to fossil jet fuels, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 70% on a lifecycle basis.
With the key to decarbonisation to accelerate expansion plans, the government has announced an additional £400,000 funding to producers, allowing new clean fuels to move to the market more quickly and speed up the UK’s path to green flying.
Fuel is more expensive to produce than jet fuel, but government SAF measures protect industries and consumers from excessive costs.
Additionally, the Revenue Certification Mechanism (RCM) minimizes ticket prices changes, keeps on average variance at £1.50 per year, and provides industry funding through collections from aviation fuel suppliers.
The Department of Transport (DFT) will continue to engage with the industry for details on RCM, including pricing.
Fast SAF commercialization process
Government funding has also been announced to provide £400,000 shares to fuel producers, to support green fuel testing and qualifications.
This support for the producer follows the £63 million funds made available through this year’s Advanced Fuels Fund.
The government’s commitment to green fuels will help us realize our mission to launch economic growth through job creation and become a clean energy superpower. The UK can also move its expansion plans faster and boost the tourism industry.
Aviation Minister Mike Kane said: “Aviation will remain one of the fastest growing and most integral parts of the UK economy, providing more jobs across engineering, tourism and hospitality and need to move full throttle towards decarbonisation.
“We make the UK one of the best places in the world to produce sustainable aviation fuels, beat pedals and boost employment opportunities across the country.”
22% of jet fuel must be green by 2040
This new law will help meet industry requirements under the SAF mandate introduced in January this year. This specifies that at least 10% of all jet fuel used on flights taking off from the UK from 2030 will be made from sustainable fuel, rising to 22% by 2040.
The government’s approach to low-carbon fuels could potentially position the UK as a global hub for SAF production by 2050, reaching up to £5 billion in the economy.
“The UK’s SAF industry, kickstarted by RCM and SAF mandate, can support the world-class aviation sector and provide economic growth while creating tens of thousands of jobs across the country,” explained Tim Alderledo, the airline’s chief executive.
Duncan McCourt, CEO of Sustainable Aviation, added: “We greatly welcome the release of this important legislation. SAF is a key component of our plan to decarbonize aviation, as it can be used with existing aircraft with existing infrastructure.”
He concluded: “The challenge now is to expand the industry and ensure that there are enough SAFs to meet the mandate while maintaining thousands of jobs while keeping costs down. This law will help you do that.”
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