Airbus is to collaborate with two major airlines, European low-cost operator Wizz Air and full-service Taiwanese international carrier EVA Air, to help each prepare for the imminent introduction of sustainable aviation fuel. The airframer will partner with Wizz Air for SAF-powered trials of Airbus A321neo jets on two key routes, from Barcelona and Brussels Charleroi to the airline’s hub in Budapest, in readiness for the introduction next year of the SAF usage mandates at EU airports under the ReFuelEU plan. Airbus will also work with EVA Air for the next two years to explore multiple ways to help decarbonise the carrier’s flights while also preparing for the introduction of SAF. Their sustainability partnership was announced in Taipei during an event to mark the airline’s order for 33 new Airbus jets.

Like a growing number of carriers, Wizz Air has committed that SAF will comprise 10% of its total jet fuel use by 2030. Its test flights with Airbus, to occur before the end of this year, are designed to help operationally prepare the airline for the EU’s escalating blending mandates, which from next year will require at least 2% of total fuel uplift to be SAF.

Airbus will provide technical guidance and expertise to help maximise the efficient integration of SAF across Wizz Air’s operation while product for the trials will be supplied by Spanish refiner Cepsa and distributed to the departure airports by World Fuel Services, a division of Florida-based energy group World Kinect.

The airline will buy up to 34 metric tons of pure SAF, of which 16 metric tons will be uplifted through blends of up to 5% for the flights from Barcelona-El Prat Airport and 18 metric tons of neat SAF in a 10% blend will be provided at Brussels Charleroi.

The Wizz Air project will be conducted using the mass balancing method, through which SAF use is tracked across an airline’s network and its environmental benefits allocated to specific flights, regardless of where the fuel is physically used, enabling carriers to support SAF production and use globally.

“With this project,” said the airline, “Wizz Air is taking steps to incorporate SAF into its operations, on top of leveraging the fuel efficiency of the Airbus A321neo aircraft, testing the alignment with regulatory frameworks ahead of schedule and working to understand passengers’ awareness of SAF and surrounding policies.”

Yvonne Moynihan, the airline’s Corporate and ESG Officer, said the project demonstrated cross-industry collaboration to reduce aviation’s emissions intensity, while building broader awareness of measures to make air transport more sustainable.

“We are not only testing SAF operations but also gathering insights from our passengers on their awareness of levers to decarbonise aviation,” she said.

Results of the survey will be released publicly, not only to highlight passenger expectations but also to guide the aviation industry in enhancing sustainability efforts.

“Fuel-efficient aircraft and SAF will provide the majority of the emissions reductions our industry needs to make by 2050,” added Julie Kitcher, Airbus’ Chief Sustainability Officer, “which is why working together with partners like Wizz Air to efficiently integrate SAF across airline operations is such an important step.”

Marta Cencillo, Head of Sustainable Aviation for the SAF producer, Cepsa, welcomed the trial flights with WizzAir as “an immediate solution to help decarbonise flights” and “an important initiative to move towards effective emissions reduction ahead of the ReFuelEU mandate.”

The exercise was also a key step in the broader introduction of SAF, added Duncan Storey, World Fuel’s SVP supply and commercial development, EMEA.

“Aligning with the upcoming ReFuelEU aviation requirements is an important milestone in our efforts to expand the availability of sustainable fuels,” he said. “Since 2015, we been actively working to increase the availability of lower-carbon aviation fuels across the globe. Our SAF supply network in Europe includes multiple key locations such as the UK, Germany and France.”

Madrid-based Cepsa is changing its name to Moeve in a phased rollout beginning in November.

“I’m thrilled to announce that a great brand, Cepsa, which has been with us for over 90 years, is transforming and to tell the world that we’re becoming a different type of organisation, Moeve, in which the majority of profits will come from sustainable activities by the end of this decade,” said the company’s CEO, Maarten Wetselaar. “This well-known and collaborative company has rapidly accelerated its transformation over the past two years, reaching multiple milestones outlined in its 2030 Positive Motion strategy. Building on these achievements and those still to come, we are introducing a new brand that reflects our steadfast commitment to leading Europe’s energy transition, particularly in green hydrogen, second-generation biofuels and ultra-fast electric mobility.”

Across the world in Taipei, Taiwan, Airbus inked another sustainability partnership, this time a two-year collaboration with customer airline EVA Air, during an event to celebrate orders by the carrier for 18 long-haul Airbus A350-1000 twinjets and 15 narrowbody A321neo aircraft, which the companies estimate will reduce fuel burn and CO2 emissions by up to 25% compared to earlier model jets.

“The agreement lays the foundation for the two companies to explore over the next 24 months avenues for decarbonisation within EVA Air’s operations, prepare the ecosystem for sustainable aviation fuel adoption and ensure infrastructure readiness,” said the airline.

“These efforts will ensure that we can steadily move towards a net zero future,” added the carrier’s President, Clay Sun.

Airbus Commercial Aircraft CEO Christian Scherer said the planemaker was deepening its collaboration with EVA Air in line with a broader ambition to help decarbonise the aviation sector.

The two companies will study measures needed to prepare for the use of SAF to power commercial flights, as well as establishing procurement processes and managing certification of SAF. Airbus will also evaluate the potential contributions of multiple measures based on EVA’s current and future routes, and its operational practices.

Top image (Airbus): Airbus will partner with Wizz Air for SAF-powered trials of the airline’s A321neo jets

Bottom photo: EVA Air and Airbus mark decarbonisation agreement

Tony Harrington

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Madrid-based energy group Cepsa and Singapore-controlled Bio-Oils, a division of Apical, have announced the start of construction of a new biofuels plant in southern Spain, which from 2026 aims to produce low carbon transport fuels from agricultural waste or used cooking oil. The partners say their new second generation (2G) fuel facility in Huelva will have annual capability to flexibly produce 500,000 tons of SAF and renewable diesel, as well as biogas and biogenic CO2, and claim that through the use of renewable hydrogen and electricity, and multiple heat recovery and energy efficiency systems, it will emit 75% less CO2 than other biofuel plants. It will also use reclaimed water rather than fresh supplies. Elsewhere in Spain, energy company Repsol has received certification from the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB) that permits it to trade SAF within RSB’s book-and-claim system. This enables Repsol to sell and deliver SAF at specific airports and enter it into the RSB registry, thus allowing customers at other airports around the world to claim the carbon reductions of the registered SAF when purchasing traditional jet fuel.

Together with facilities they already operate in Huelva, in Spain’s Andalusia region, Cepsa and Bio-Oils expect to form Europe’s second-largest renewable fuel complex, with total annual production capacity of 1 million tons, the use of which they claim will prevent the emission of 3 million tons of CO2 per year, equivalent to 4% of the emissions produced by road transport in Spain.

At a time of growing concern about funding for sustainable aviation programmes, the new plant is also solidly supported, with Cepsa jointly owned by the UAE sovereign investment company Mubadala and Washington DC-based global investment fund The Carlyle Group, while Bio-Oils is a division of Singapore-based industrialist Apical, a leading international producer of vegetable oil products including renewable fuel feedstocks. The two will invest €1.2 billion ($1.3bn) in the Huelva project, which is also supported by the regional government of Andalusia, and is expected to create 2,000 direct and indirect jobs during the construction and operation phases.

“This strategic project for Spain and Andalusia will make us a European benchmark in the field of green molecules and facilitate the immediate decarbonisation of sectors that cannot run on electrons, like aviation,” said Cepsa CEO Maarten Wetselaar. “This is the start of a new chapter for Cepsa and this region that will generate quality employment and a new era of industrialisation.”

Apical’s Executive Director, Pratheepan Karunagaran, said global production of SAF was expected to triple this year compared to last, but added that availability of sustainable feedstock was a challenge for many countries. His company has signed a long-term agreement to supply feedstock for the new Huelva plant.

“As we continue to expand Apical’s global footprint and capacities, the availability of waste and residue is set to grow in tandem, enabling value-added partnerships to be forged for our waste stream to drive the production and adoption of SAF,” said Karunagaran. “Our 2G biofuels plant with Cepsa, which will be the largest aviation fuel processing facility in southern Europe, is an excellent example of how industry players can come together to unlock the potential of SAF and scale up adoption in an affordable manner.”

Juan Manuel Bonilla, President of the regional government of Andalusia, said his region “is ready to become Europe’s major producer and distributor of clean energy, playing a key role in the irrevocable goal of decarbonising the planet. This future biofuel plant by Cepsa is a clear and valuable example.”

Elsewhere in southern Spain, Repsol is currently completing final commissioning of its advanced biofuels plant in Cartagena, which will have the capacity to produce 250,000 tons of SAF and renewable diesel per year from organic waste. The company has been producing SAF at its refineries since 2020 and supplying airlines including Iberia, Air Europa, Vueling, Iberojet and cargo operator Atlas Air. In May 2023, Repsol signed a long-term agreement with Ryanair to supply up to 155,000 tons of SAF for its operations in Spain and Portugal between 2025 and 2030.

Repsol said gaining the new RSB certification will open a wider global market for it to supply SAF from the Cartagena plant.

“Being certified to access the world’s most credible and robust book-and-claim system is a milestone for Repsol,” said Carlos Suarez, the company’s Director of International Aviation. “It enables us to introduce more SAF into the supply chain, allowing more players in the aviation sector to take advantage of the benefits from SAF. Our new plant in Cartagena is a guarantee that we can supply the fuel and thus help boost the reduction of the carbon footprint of air transport.”

RSB’s chain of custody model has been developed to ensure full traceability and credibility, as well as a demonstrable climate impact by avoiding double counting in the process, says Repsol. The carbon reductions associated with the SAF are registered as a ‘book-and-claim unit’ and transferred to any willing buyer globally, while the physical fuel delivered at the nearest airport does not have any sustainability criteria attached. Currently, book-and-claim is only targeting voluntary markets and not compliance regimes.

“Trust is the centrepiece of book-and-claim, and delivering a trustworthy solution built on a genuinely global muti-stakeholder approach is fundamental for the RSB,” said Elena Schmidt, Executive Director of RSB.

Repsol received the certification through SGS, accredited by RSB to perform independent audits. “Verification by SGS guarantees the traceability, accuracy and coherence of the information communicated and reinforces the transparency of Repsol’s chain of custody processes,” said Jesús Bennasar, Director of Sustainability Services at SGS Iberia.

Photo: Cepsa

Tony Harrington

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Additional reporting by Christopher Surgenor

European low-cost carrier Wizz Air has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Spanish energy company Cepsa for the supply of sustainable aviation fuel from 2025, the Budapest-based airline’s third renewable fuel deal in six months. While the volume to be acquired through the latest agreement was not disclosed, the airline said the agreement would enable it to use blended SAF on flights from 14 destinations in Spain. In February, Wizz Air signed with renewable fuel company Neste for the supply of 108,000 tons of blended SAF for three years, again from 2025, for use on its European and UK flights. And late last year, it signed another MoU to acquire up to 185,000 tons of blended SAF from Vienna-based renewable fuel supplier OMV between 2023 and 2030. The deals support a commitment by Wizz Air to cut CO2 emissions by 25% per passenger kilometre by 2030 and achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The partnership with Cepsa follows a week-long trial last November in which Wizz Air joined five other airlines in using SAF to part-fuel a total of 220 flights from Seville Airport in southern Spain. The fuel was produced locally by Cepsa at its La Rábida Energy Park in Huelva, as part of its ‘Positive Motion’ strategic plan, in which it aims to become the largest producer of biofuels in Spain and Portugal by 2030. The entire process, from production to distribution of the SAF, was certified as traceable by the International Sustainability Carbon Certification system (ICCS).

Cepsa is targeting annual production capacity of 2.5 million tonnes, including 800,000 tonnes of SAF, and a commitment to producing new fuels from circular raw materials that do not compete with food, with feedstocks including recycled cooking oils and biodegradable waste from a range of industries.

“We are committed to creating solutions that make air transport more sustainable, and partnerships like the one with Wizz Air to develop SAF are absolutely fundamental in our joint decarbonisation journey with clients,” said Cepsa’s Director of Aviation, Tobi Pardo.   

The SAF provided in Seville was produced from feedstock including olive pits and other plant-based waste from Spain’s olive industry. Blended product containing 4.5% SAF – more than double the EU’s 2025 target of 2% – was then provided to Wizz Air, Air Europa, Air Nostrum, Iberia Express, Ryanair and Vueling by fuel storage and distribution group Exolum, with total volumes claimed by Cepsa to be enough for 400,000 kilometres of flight by an average aircraft, 400-500 hours of flight time, or 10 circuits of the Earth, sufficient to abate more than 200 tons of CO2 emissions.

As well as in Seville, future supplies of SAF from Cepsa are intended to support Wizz Air’s flights from the Spanish destinations Alicante, Barcelona El Prat, Bilbao, Castellon, Ibiza, Madrid, Malaga, Palma de Mallorca, Santander, Valencia, Zaragoza, and Fuerteventura and Teneriffe in the Canary Islands.   

“We are excited to partner with Cepsa, a renowned energy company, to establish a SAF supply chain for Wizz Air in Spain,” said Ian Malin, the airline’s EVP and Group CFO.

Through this and other SAF offtake deals, plus additional measures including data-driven efficiencies and fleet renewal, Wizz Air is targeting a 25% reduction in carbon emissions per passenger kilometre by 2030, and last year achieved its lowest annual carbon intensity of 55.2 grams per passenger kilometre, 15.4% less than in 2021. The airline is also working with SAF producers to support research into future fuel development and using its SAF commitments not just to cut emissions but to help drive up demand for low-emission product, it said.

Central to its decarbonisation programme is a major fleet investment through which Wizz Air, an all-Airbus operator, is introducing new A321neo jets, 34 of which were introduced last year. The airline has close to 180 narrowbody A320 and A321 jets, and orders for more than 300, with ‘neo’ technology planes expected to exceed half of the airline’s fleet during 2023.

In addition to its SAF commitments, Wizz Air has signed an MoU with Airbus to also explore the potential for hydrogen-powered aircraft, a high priority for the airframer, which has announced plans to introduce a new family of such aircraft into commercial service by 2035.  

Late last year, Wizz Air also joined AZEA, the EU’s Alliance for Zero Emission Aviation, an organisation created to progress the commercialisation of technologies including hydrogen and electric propulsion systems. The airline will share information on the challenges and solutions associated with introducing zero-emission aircraft into the low-cost flight market, and explore how hydrogen propulsion might be applied to future Wizz Air operations. 

Photo: Cepsa

Spanish airline group Iberia has partnered with Madrid-based global energy company Cepsa to research, develop and procure sustainable aviation fuels, and to explore other low-or-no-emission energy sources including renewable hydrogen and electricity to power ground service vehicles and aircraft tugs at airports. Cepsa will develop “on a large scale” SAF produced from waste, recycled oils and sustainable plant-based feedstock, while providing Iberia and its low-cost sibling Iberia Express with “preferential access” to the fuels, reports Tony Harrington. “This alliance illustrates our commitment to sustainability and our strong resolve to support our customers by providing them with viable solutions that accelerate their energy transition,” said Maarten Wetselaar, Cepsa’s newly-appointed CEO. “As a leader in the supply of fuels to the airline industry, we share with the Iberia Group the common goal of promoting the decarbonisation of transport as a tool in the fight against climate change.”

Sustainable aviation fuel is a core element of Iberia’s broad-based environmental strategy, says the airline, which also includes aircraft fleet renewal, greater fuel efficiency, elimination of single-use plastics on flights, improved waste management and increased use of digital processes. Iberia’s parent company, International Airlines Group, which also owns British Airways, Aer Lingus and low-cost carriers Vueling and Level, has committed it will reduce net CO2 emissions by 20% between 2019 and 2030, while the oneworld airline alliance, of which Iberia and British Airways are members, is targeting by 2030 that 10% of the collective fuel volumes of its 14 member airlines will comprise SAF.

In a joint statement, Iberia and Cepsa said: “The development of sustainably-sourced aviation fuels is a priority for moving towards an increasingly low-carbon industry and contributing to the achievement of the 2030 agenda.” They said their partnership, which will include SAF research and flight testing, would also contribute to three of the key sustainable development goals set by the United Nations – goal 7, to “ensure access to affordable, reliable and modern energy services”, goal 8, to “promote inclusive and sustained economic growth, employment and decent jobs”, and goal 13, to “take urgent action to combat climate change and its impacts.”

Additionally, the Iberia-Cepsa collaboration is intended to align with the European Commission’s ‘Fit for 55’ climate agenda, which includes the ‘ReFuelEU Aviation’ initiative, designed to increase supply of and demand for aviation biofuels in the European Union by proposing SAF blending mandates of at least 2% by 2025, 5% by 2030, and 63% by 2050.

“To decarbonise the aviation sector, the development, production and distribution of sustainably-sourced fuels at affordable prices, and in sufficient quantity to supply airlines, is essential,” said Iberia CEO Javier Sanchez-Prieto.  “We are confident that this agreement with Cepsa will contribute to that goal.”

The CEO of Iberia Express, Carlos Gomez, added: “It is time to create synergies between companies that have the same objective: developing our business and operations while minimising our environmental impact. This agreement is an important step on our path towards more sustainable air transport.”

Cepsa has two well-resourced global shareholders to help fund SAF development: Mubadala Investment Company, which is wholly-owned by the Abu Dhabi government, and US-based global private equity company The Carlyle Group. Together, they manage global assets valued at more than $536 billion.

“With this agreement,” said Cepsa and Iberia of their partnership, “the airline secures preferential access to a scarce fuel (biojet), and a competitive advantage for both customers and investors, thanks to better ratings on sustainability indexes. Other benefits include boosting the circular economy, increasing energy independence and ensuring an important driver of the Spanish economy. In addition, these fuels can be used immediately with existing supply infrastructures and without the need for fleet renewals.”

The reference by Cepsa and Iberia to investor sustainability ratings is clear acknowledgement of the growing attention being paid by investors and major fund managers to corporate sustainability programmes and outcomes, as consumers increasingly factor into their purchases the environmental action strategies of suppliers. Late last year, aviation data group CAPA and carbon reduction consultancy Envest Global produced The Airline Sustainability Benchmarking Report, which found corporations, and increasingly individual consumers, were sourcing their air travel not just based on typical features such as price and schedule, but also on the climate action strategies and performance of specific airlines (see article). The report highlighted climate activism by shareholders and investors as “an existential threat” to airlines with poor sustainability strategies, and warned that “multiple airlines” could fail in the next three to five years if they did not demonstrate meaningful commitment to decarbonising their operations.   

Photo: Iberia