Global Bioenergies’ process becomes one of the very few Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) technologies in the world certified by ASTM International. Global Bioenergies’ fuel can now be blended up to 50% with fossil kerosene in existing airplanes, the French company claims.
As a reminder, the airline industry requires the fuel used in airplanes to be ASTM certified. SAF are certified worldwide through the ASTM D7566 standard, which describes the fuel specification requirements and the maximum blending percentage with conventional fuels. This standard allows them to be considered as ‘drop-in’ fuels, which means they can be used safely in existing airplanes and infrastructures worldwide. The inclusion of new SAF production processes in the ASTM standard requires an in-depth assessment of the fuel’s performance, after which a voting procedure is launched.
The voting process has now been successfully completed after consultation of the ASTM main committee. The updated ASTM D7566 standard will be published in the coming weeks.
Marc Delcourt, Co-founder and CEO of Global Bioenergies, comments: “This positive vote is a tremendous recognition for Global Bioenergies and we thank the SkyNRG team for their great support in this ambitious process over the last years. It comes at a time when Europe has just adopted the RefuelEU plan, which aims at gradually increasing the production and incorporation of SAF, from 2% in 2025 to 6% in 2030 and up to 70% by 2050. To date, SAF represent only 0.1% of aviation fuels. This ambition is based on the construction of a very large number of plants. The target of 2% by 2025 will be reached thanks to emerging technologies based on waste oil. Subsequent targets will have to be based on the commercial success of innovative technologies like ours. »
“Reaching the SAF certification for Global Bioenergies’ process Maarten van Dijk, Co-founder and Chief Development Officer at SkyNRG states – is a great achievement for both our teams and a perfect example of what is needed to drive innovation and build a more sustainable aviation industry. To reach net zero emissions, the industry now needs solid partnerships to realise the increase in production capacity. These include partners who commit to meaningful SAF offtakes, investors that recognize the importance of SAF in their portfolio and are willing to fund projects, and visionary leaders and governments who recognize and can address the investment hurdles that remain.”
IL BIOECONOMISTA 