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

Global freight airline Atlas Air has commenced using a 5% blend of sustainable aviation fuel on flights from Zaragoza Airport in north-east Spain, more than double the 2% volume mandated from 2025 under Europe’s ReFuelEU Aviation regulation. The SAF is provided by Spanish refiner Repsol for Atlas Air flights operated on behalf of the global fashion company Inditex, which owns apparel brands including Zara, Massimo Dutti, Pull&Bear and Bershka. Repsol already supplies SAF to airlines including IAG’s Spanish-based carriers Iberia and Vueling, and the European low-cost operator Ryanair, but New York-based Atlas Air is the first all-freight operator to use SAF regularly on flights in Spain. The Repsol deal to fuel the Atlas-Inditex flights also progresses the efforts of the airline’s parent, Atlas Air Worldwide, to achieve a targeted 20% reduction in its Scope 1 carbon emissions by 2035.

In addition to its current SAF production, Repsol is preparing to deliver significantly more from a new biofuels plant in Cartagena, Spain’s first renewable fuels facility. It will have capacity to produce 250,000 tons of SAF and renewable diesel per year, largely from feedstocks including used cooking oil and waste from the agri-food sector, which the company estimates will be able to avert 900,000 tons of CO2 per year. Repsol plans to open a second renewable fuels plant in Puertollano in 2025, producing a further 240,000 tons of renewable fuels per year.

Oliver Fernández, Director of International Aviation for Repsol, said the Atlas Air deal further advanced decarbonisation of the air transport sector. “SAF is the future, but also the present,” he said. “With the upcoming launch of our new advanced biofuels plant in Cartagena we are ready to supply the sector with the SAF it needs to realise its decarbonisation ambitions.”

By 2025, says Repsol, around 120,000 tons of SAF will be needed in Spain to meet the 2% fuel blending obligation of the ReFuelEU Aviation ambition. By then, the company says, it is targeting total renewable fuel production capacity of 1.3 million tons, further increasing to 2 million tons in 2030 when the SAF blending mandate will rise to 6%, before steeply increasing to 70% by 2050, the aviation sector’s deadline to achieve net zero carbon emissions from flights.

Atlas Air and sibling companies Polar Air Cargo and Titan operate more than 100 Boeing 737, 767, 777 and 747 aircraft for freight and passenger charter services, performing some 61,000 flights per year. The group is the largest operator of Boeing 747s with 57 in service, including new, fuel-efficient B747-8 freighters, among them the last jumbo ever manufactured by Boeing. Compared to earlier models, the new 747s offer 20% more payload capacity while reducing fuel consumption by 16%. The company has also ordered four new B777-200LRF aircraft.

“We are committed to contributing to the sustainability of the aviation sector and appreciate this opportunity to work with our valued partners at Inditex and Repsol,” said Michael Steen, CEO of Atlas Air Worldwide. “It is critical for our sector to work together in driving wider adoption and availability of SAF, which ultimately will have a positive impact on our industry and the environment.”

The agreement between Atlas Air, Inditex, and Repsol is also designed to enhance production of SAF in Spain, including refinery capacity and sourcing raw materials locally, to help reduce aviation emissions.

The freight airline is additionally exploring opportunities to procure SAF elsewhere in its network, which spans 265 destinations in 60 countries.

“SAF is a significant component of our strategy to meet our greenhouse gas emissions reduction goal and the industry’s 2050 target for net zero carbon emissions,” the company explained in its latest sustainability report.

“We are actively involved in advancing SAF adoption in the aviation industry to increase access and moderate costs. Significant changes in government policy, infrastructure, and funding, as well as multi-sector cooperation, will be necessary for SAF to have a significant impact on the air cargo industry’s fuel sourcing practices.”

In addition to IATA and ICAO, Atlas also partners with the Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA) and the Kentucky Sustainable Fuel Coalition (KSFC) in the US to help progress access to affordable SAF.

Atlas Air is also a participant in SAF book-and-claim programmes on behalf of its customers.

“Since SAF is currently produced in limited locations, the book-and-claim model allows us to work with our customers to utilise SAF, while reducing SAF-related logistics costs and lowering our own emissions by purchasing SAF from alternate locations,” the company said. “We continue to focus on enhancing our fuel software and SAF procurement processes so our customers all over the world have SAF purchasing options available to them.”

Photo: Atlas Air

Tony Harrington

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A Ryanair deal with global energy group Repsol and the launch by Italian carrier ITA Airways of its ‘Fly with SAF’ programme, together with the signing of an agreement with logistics provider DB Schenker, and a Neste agreement with World Fuel Services are among a number of new European sustainable aviation fuel initiatives. Ryanair and Repsol have signed a MoU to advance the supply of SAF at airports used by Ryanair across Spain and Portugal. The ITA programme offers freight forwarders and shippers the possibility of supporting the purchase of SAF and thus reducing their CO2 emissions while shipping their goods. In Hungary, energy and petrochemicals company MOL, in cooperation with Neste, Budapest Airport, Wizz Air and airport fuel supplier RÜK have started commercially testing a SAF supply chain to prepare the fuel supply system ahead of the EU SAF mandate introduction in 2025. With greater volumes of SAF available from Neste, World Fuel Services is increasing the number of European airports it can supply with SAF from 13 to over 40.

Ryanair’s agreement with Repsol gives Europe’s largest low-cost carrier access to up to 155,000 tonnes (52 million gallons) of SAF between 2025 and 2030 – equivalent to over 28,000 flights from Dublin to Madrid – and saving around 490,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions.

“SAF plays a key role in Ryanair’s Pathway to Net Zero strategy and our goal of using 12.5% SAF by 2030,” said Ryanair DAC CEO Eddie Wilson. “Achieving this requires multiple different feedstocks and production methods, and we’re encouraged that Repsol are looking at multiple solutions. This agreement helps Ryanair secure access to around 15% of this ambitious goal.”

ITA Airways’ Fly with SAF has been designed for cargo companies and companies whose staff fly for work and contributions will be entirely used by the airline to cover the extra cost of SAF, with customers choosing their level of commitment. DB Schenker is the first partner to enter the programme.

The Italian flag carrier is taking part in the 2023 edition of the SkyTeam airline alliance’s The Sustainable Flight Challenge, following its success last year when it won two awards. ITA will participate with four flights involving a round-trip Airbus A330 flight on May 20 from Rome Fiumicino to Miami and its return journey the same day, followed by return flights between Rome and Barcelona on May 28 using an Airbus A320neo. Activities will include the use of SAF, more sustainable catering, waste recycling and use of compostable materials, and use of accredited carbon offsets meeting internationally-recognised standards.

The SAF testing at Budapest Airport started on May 10 with Wizz Air flights using a blend of Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel supplied by MOL. Wizz Air’s three newest Airbus A321neo aircraft were fuelled with a total blend of 23.5 tonnes containing 37% SAF and 63% Jet A1 fuel. The aircraft carried passengers from Budapest to Paris and several other European destinations.

Commented Yvonne Moynihan, Corporate and ESG Officer at Wizz Air: “Our SAF test, which is ahead of the legislative mandates coming in 2025, demonstrates that industry collaboration is one of the most impactful ways to address the current climate challenge. The initiative at Budapest Airport is a testament to our broader strategy, with alternative fuels playing a significant role.”

MOL itself is aiming to enter the SAF production market. “So far, we have mainly taken steps in road transport fuels. At our Danube refinery, for example, we have been co-processing vegetable oils, used cooking oils and animal fats with fossil components since 2021 to produce more sustainable diesel,” said Csaba Zsótér, SVP of MOL Group’s Downstream Fuels. “We are now moving into a new area, working with our partners to gain experience in aviation fuels to make aviation more sustainable. I am confident that the first SAF shipment, which is now being launched as a commercial test, will be followed by many more.”

The expansion of production by Neste is enabling fuel supplier World Fuel Services to increase deliveries of SAF to its commercial, business and general aviation customers at over 40 European airports, paving the way for future accessibility of SAF to more than 100 airport locations presently in World Fuel’s European network.

“We are confident this agreement and deeper collaboration with Neste will serve to accelerate our ability to support customers in their decarbonisation ambitions across the globe,” said Duncan Storey, VP Supply Aviation Europe, World Fuel Services.

Responded Alexander Kueper, VP EMEA Renewable Aviation at Neste: “We are excited to expand our collaboration with World Fuel as we increase our annual SAF production capability to 1.5 million tons per annum by the beginning of 2024.”

Photo: ITA Airways Airbus A350 in ‘Born to be sustainable’ livery

Christopher Surgenor

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