Qatar Airways signs SAF agreement...

The airline will be uplifting 5 million US gallons of neat sustainable aviation fuel annually

Qatar Airways and sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) producer Gevo have signed an offtake agreement that will see the airline purchasing 25 million US gallons of neat SAF over the course of five years, uplifting 5 million US gallons of neat SAF each year. The airline will blend the SAF with its existing supply of conventional jet fuel.

SAF is produced from a variety of sustainable resources, or feedstocks, such as agricultural waste, used cooking oil and carbon captured from the air, and it reduces life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions by 85% or more when compared with conventional jet fuel.

“By working with farmers on regenerative agricultural practices, Gevo can sustainably source feedstock to produce sustainable aviation fuel, while also increasing soil health, sequestering carbon, and providing nutritional products to the food chain,” said Gevo’s chief executive officer Patrick R Gruber.

The partnership is in line with the airline’s Oneworld Alliance members’ commitment to purchase up to 200 million US gallons of SAF from Gevo, and deliveries are expected to commence in 2028 at various airports in California.

In September 2020, Oneworld became the first global airline alliance to unite behind a goal to achieve carbon neutrality with net zero carbon emissions by 2050. The alliance subsequently committed to a target of 10% sustainable aviation fuel use across the alliance by 2030.

Qatar Airways Group chief executive Akbar Al Baker said: “Qatar Airways continues to prioritise our commitment to net-zero flying by the middle of this century. Decarbonising aviation requires a gradual incorporation of lower carbon and sustainable aviation fuels, and we are proud to collaborate on this global effort for a better future.”