The Promise of Sustainable Aviation Fuel

Last week, the Bioenergy Technologies Office (BETO) at The U.S. Department of Energy held a webinar titled, “Sustainable Aviation Fuel Strategies at the Bioenergy Technologies Office.” The webinar provided an up-to-date overview of the promise and potential for sustainable aviation fuel, now and in the years ahead. 

Dr. Valerie Sarisky-Reed, acting director of BETO, and Zia Haq, senior analyst at BETO, shared information ranging about the types of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) feedstocks coming to market; the commitment of the aviation industry to limit carbon emissions over the next 30 years and beyond, and how the potential of sustainable aviation fuel benefits farmers, the environment, and the aviation industry.

SAF Benefits

Interest, investment and production of sustainable aviation fuel in the years ahead will help grow the industry, especially with aviation leaders like Delta Air Lines, which has a long-term commitment with Northwest Advanced Bio-Fuels to use biofuels in their efforts to lessen the carbon emissions from their fleet.

Some of the challenges for airlines using petroleum-based fuels were outlined in the slide below. 

Aviation industry commitment to limit carbon emissions 

Aviation passenger numbers are expected to double to more than 8 billion by 2050, so airlines are engaged in the efforts to reduce carbon emissions and transition to sustainable aviation fuels in the coming years.

BETO Upcoming SAF Roundtable

The webinar hosts also shared news of a major upcoming virtual roundtable to discuss sustainable aviation fuels and their use to de-carbonize the aviation sector. Participants may include public and private sector leaders, representatives of major government agencies (DoE, USDA, FAA and NASA), along with White House representatives. More information is to come on this symposium in the coming months.

As part of its mission, the Bioenergy Technologies Office supports efforts to enable the sustainable use of domestic waste resources for the production of biofuels and bioproducts. BETO’s overall goals are designed to:

• Lower costs and reduce technology risks for the production of biofuels and bioproducts
• Improve the environmental benefits of bioenergy production
• Reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the transportation, industrial, and agricultural sectors to address the climate crisis
• Support the scale-up of sustainable, low-carbon biofuel production technologies.
• Create economic opportunities and good-paying jobs in the agricultural and manufacturing sectors.

At Northwest Advanced Bio-Fuels, LLC, we support the efforts of these agencies to bring about a future in which sustainable aviation fuel can flourish in a market economy.  

(Slides shown from the BETO webinar August 2021)