Carsten Spohr, the CEO of Lufthansa, has expressed his concerns about the European Union’s 2030 biofuel targets. The EU’s ReFuelEu legislation mandates the use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) in every flight departing from an EU airport. The targets aim for a SAF blending ratio of 2% by 2025, 5% by 2030, and at least 63% by 2050.
Spohr is skeptical about Germany’s ability to meet the demand for the required amount of biofuel. He believes that there is currently insufficient SAF production to meet airline demand, and passengers may have to bear high costs as a result of the new legislation.
The leading SAF producer in Europe is Neste, a Finnish Energy Company that uses repurposed cooking oil and animal fats blended with A1 Jet Fuel. Neste’s SAF accounts for 65% of the International Air Travel Association’s strategy towards achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
However, the increase in biofuel demand proposed by the EU mandate is seen as unrealistic by industry CEOs like Spohr. Currently, SAF only makes up 0.05% of EU fuel use, and it is questionable whether enough sustainable fuel can be produced to meet the increased demand within the given timeframe.
A report by The Royal Society suggests that the UK, for example, cannot meet the demand for SAF production. The report argues that further research and testing on alternative fuels like hydrogen and ammonia are needed before they can be considered as viable options.
In Germany, the Aviation Initiative for Renewable Energy proposes a roadmap for developing a sustainable aviation fuel industry. The roadmap emphasizes the importance of strong criteria for biofuels and suggests importing from North America to meet demand.
Lufthansa is already taking steps towards utilizing biofuels. They partner with Atmosfair, a biofuel production plant, and have signed a letter of intent to produce SAF at another site in Speyer. The SAF industry in Europe is growing, but it remains uncertain how quickly biofuels will become a key component of every European flight and whether the mandate can be met by 2030.
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