AIRSHOW-Airlines Grapple with Food vs Biofuel Debate
by Maria Sheahan and Victoria Bryan (Reuters) …Airlines, keen to cut pollution from jet fuel ahead of EU penalties from next year, and biofuel associations at the Berlin ILA air show this week said their research focused on how best to avoid taking land and crops needed for food.
“We are looking at second generation (fuels). In many cases we are talking about land on which food crop will not grow at all,” Richard Altman, executive director of the Commercial Aviation Alternative Fuel Initiative (CAAFI), said.
The amount of land available worldwide that is not suitable for agricultural use is currently estimated at anywhere between 600 million and 3.5 billion hectares, according to the Aviation Initiative for Renewable Energy in Germany (AIREG).
… Biofuels have not met investors’ expectations so far and that means that while the technology is there, getting the investment for large volumes is tricky, according to Primus CEO Bob Johnson.
“The market is enormous, but it is all down to volume and price. If you were making enough certified jet fuel at the right price, the airlines would take all of it,” he said. READ MORE
