The implementation of the ‘ReFuelEU Aviation’ regulation, which requires suppliers to increase the proportion of sustainable fuels (SAF) in their fuel mix, has already stimulated an increase in SAF production capacity in the EU, according to a report by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) published on Wednesday 22 October.
In its report, EASA points out that production capacity assessments indicate that the EU is on track to meet the mandatory overall target for sustainable fuel blending in 2030, set at 6% by the regulation, which came into force in 2023 (see EUROPE 13249/18).
However, synthetic fuels were absent from the fuel mix in 2024, underlining that this technology is still in its infancy in the EU. The average price of SAF in 2024 was €2,085/tonne, compared with €734/tonne for conventional aviation fuel.
In addition, 25 fuel suppliers provided SAF to 33 EU airports in 12 Member States. Nevertheless, airports in just five Member States - France, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Germany - accounted for 99% of supply, which shows just how concentrated the market remains. Almost all the SAF were biofuels, 81% produced from used cooking oil and 17% from used animal fats. 69% of raw materials came from outside the EU: 38% from China and 12% from Malaysia. Finland was the EU’s biggest contributor, with 10% of raw materials.
Read the report: https://aeur.eu/f/j3o (Original version in French by Anne Damiani)