EU Parliament and Council Reach Informal Deal on SAF

by Alan Sherrard (Bioenergy International) A provisional deal, reached in the late hours of April 25, 2023, between the European Parliament and Council negotiators on RefuelEU Aviation rules, sets the minimum share of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to be made available at EU airports, to cut emissions and ensure the EU becomes climate neutral by 2050.

The ReFuelEU Aviation initiative is part of the “Fit for 55 in 2030 package”, the EU’s strategy to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at least 55 percent by 2030 compared to 1990 levels, in line with the European Climate Law, and first presented by the European Commission in July 2021.

The European Parliament and Council negotiators agreed to increase the uptake of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), such as advanced biofuels or hydrogen, in the aviation sector.

The informal deal still needs to be approved by the Council Committee of Permanent Representatives and Parliament’s Transport and Tourism Committee, and then the Council and Parliament as a whole.

According to the deal, the term ‘sustainable aviation fuels’ will include synthetic fuels, certain biofuels produced from agricultural or forestry residues, algae, bio-waste, used cooking oil (UCO) or certain animal fats, and recycled jet fuels produced from waste gases and waste plastic.

However, feed and food crop-based fuels and fuels derived from palm and soy materials will not be considered green as “they do not align with the sustainability criteria.”

They also managed to include renewable hydrogen as part of a SAF mix, as it is seen as “a promising technology that could progressively contribute to the decarbonization of air transport.”

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1) Aviation fuel suppliers to supply a minimum share of SAF at EU airports, starting at 2% of overall fuel supplied by 2025 and reaching 70% by 2050. The new EU jet fuel blend will need to also contain a minimum share of the most modern and environmentally-friendly synthetic fuels, which increases over time;

2) Aircraft operators departing from EU airports to refuel only with the fuel necessary for the flight, to avoid emissions related to extra weight or carbon leakage caused by ‘tankering' practices (deliberately carrying excess fuel to avoid refuelling with SAF);

3) Airports to ensure that their fuelling infrastructure is available and fit for SAF distribution.

The blending mandate covers biofuels , recycled carbon fuels and synthetic aviation fuels (e-fuels) in line with the Renewable Energy Directive, but excludes food and feed crops, supporting sustainability objectives. Since it will apply throughout the EU, the new mandate will ensure a level playing field within the EU internal market, provide legal certainty to fuel producers and help kick-start large-scale production across the continent. It will also increase the EU's energy security by reducing dependencies on third-country sourced energy products and create thousands of new jobs in the energy sector. The EU's airlines will have access to increasing amounts of sustainable aviation fuel throughout the EU.

Yesterday's political agreement now requires formal adoption by the Parliament and the Council. Once this process is completed, the new legislation will be published in the Official Journal of the European Union and enter into force with immediate effect.

This agreement is an important step towards the implementation of the Commission's ‘Fit for 55' legislative package, and will help achieve the EU's climate ambitions under the European Green Deal.

Aviation emissions in Europe increased an average of 5% year-on-year between 2013 and 2019. While dropping dramatically during the pandemic, aviation emissions are still projected to grow further. The increased climate ambition of the aviation sector will be crucial for the EU to reach its climate objectives under the Paris Agreement and make the European Green Deal a reality.

To achieve climate neutrality, the EU needs to reduce transport emissions by 90% by 2050 (compared to 1990 levels). RefuelEU Aviation will help the aviation sector contribute to achieving that target, together with the revised rules on the EU Emissions Trading System in the aviation sector.