British Airways has signed a deal to use recycled cooking oils and household waste to make fuel for its flights, which will be produced at scale in the UK.
The airline revealed on Thursday evening that it had reached an agreement with a refinery in north Lincolnshire to purchase thousands of tonnes of sustainable aviation fuel, which it said would add up to the equivalent of 700 transatlantic flights on a Boeing 787 with net zero carbon emissions.
British Airways has committed to power 10% of its flights with fuel from the US by the year 2030, and has forged partnerships with fuel suppliers in the US.
Commercial production of jet fuel in the UK will be earlier than anticipated because of the deal with thePhillips 66 Humber refinery. The airlines say that the recycling reduces lifecycle CO2 emissions by more than 80% compared with traditional jet fuel.
The UK has the resources and capabilities to be a global leader in the development of SAF, and scaling up the production of SAF requires a truly collaborative approach.
The site would be the first in the UK to produce SAFs at scale, according to the general manager. We are currently refining almost half a million litres of sustainable waste feedstocks a day. Markets for lower-carbon products are growing, and this agreement shows our ability to supply them.
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The early leader in achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050 was the parent company of BA, IAG.
Electric passenger jets could be in service by the year 2035, although airlines and manufacturers claim sustainable fuels are the only medium-term solution for cutting aviation emissions.
The first passenger flight powered by 100% sustainable fuel was operated by United Airlines on Wednesday. The fuel was used in one of the engines to meet the rules that allow a maximum 50% blend of SAFs with kerosene.
The Aviation Environment Federation has argued that the use of offsets to remove greenhouse gas emissions from the economy in a similar way to offset jet fuel emissions can be expensive and energy-hungry.
