Two new global investment funds focused on sustainable aviation – one backed by Airbus, the other by Boeing – have announced their first projects as concerns deepen across the air transport sector about a lack of capital to develop new fuels, infrastructure and technologies. Clear Sky has been launched by a team of aviation and finance executives to accelerate a range of projects that help cut aviation emissions. Clear Sky’s first commitment is a co-investment with Boeing in UK-based startup Firefly Green Fuels, which plans to convert sewage waste feedstock into SAF. A second consortium of seven prominent aviation and finance groups has established the Sustainable Aviation Fuel Financing Alliance (SAFFA), focused purely on speeding up production of SAF. Led by Airbus, SAFFA has invested in US-based Crysalis Biosciences, which has purchased a decommissioned ethanol plant in Illinois and converted it to produce low carbon intensity SAF and biochemicals.  

Clear Sky has been developed by six partners  – Krishnan Narayanan, a former partner and regional leader at PWC Strategy&, with broad experience in sustainability and new technologies; Simon Talling-Smith, a former CCO of Qatar Airways and EVP at British Airways, and a specialist in innovative technologies; Glenn Morgan, a former CTO of International Airlines Group (IAG) and founder of its Hangar 51 innovation programme; Robert Boyle, a former Chief Strategy Officer at IAG;  Kurt Stache, a former CMO of American Airlines; and Julia Sattel, a former president of travel technology group Amadeus and VP Strategic Marketing at Toshiba.

Its multi-strand investment strategy covers sustainable aviation fuel, carbon removal systems, alternative propulsion technologies, innovative ground operations and materials recycling.

“Our analysis showed sustainable aviation was highly underpenetrated when it came to capital, particularly alternative investment capital,” said Clear Sky founding partner Narayanan. “By various estimates, up to $5 trillion of capital will be required over the next three decades for aviation to get to net zero. So there’s clearly more capital required, but it needs to be invested in the right things in the right way by the right experts. And I think generalist funds generally struggle to do that. Hopefully by having a bunch of aviation experts act as a catalyst we can achieve both of those things.”

Together with Boeing, with which it has formed a broader partnership to invest in sustainable aviation and related sectors, Clear Sky announced during the recent Farnborough Airshow that it will support Firefly Green Fuels in transforming sewage waste feedstock through hydrothermal liquefaction, a process which uses heat and high pressure to convert waste into biocrude oil and biochar, a powdery product which can be used as fertiliser. The companies claim that SAF produced through this process could reduce lifecycle CO2 emissions by over 90%.

“SAF offers the greatest opportunity to decarbonise aviation, and the industry’s collective challenge of bringing it to scale globally requires new sustainable pathways,” said Boeing’s Chief Sustainability Officer, Brian Moran. “Clear Sky combines many years of investment expertise with knowledge on aviation’s decarbonisation challenges. Firefly’s technology holds transformative potential as the SAF feedstock – sewage waste – is accessible in all regions of the globe.”

Firefly CEO James Hygate said his company was clearing the way to “cost competitive and globally available fuel” in a market where demand for SAF well outstrips supply. “With the support of Clear Sky and Boeing, we are propelling toward our goal of commercial production in the UK by 2029,” he said, “and rapid replication across the globe.”

Clear Sky’s Narayanan welcomed the partnership with Boeing – “undoubtedly a leader in advancing aviation’s decarbonisation journey” – and signalled more projects would be announced.

Coinciding with the Firefly deal, travel technology group Amadeus also signed a letter of intent to invest in the debut fund from Clear Sky. “The journey toward sustainability in the travel industry is one we must undertake together,” said Decius Valmorbida, President of Travel, Amadeus.  

Airbus is leading the new SAFFA investment fund with big-name partners Air France-KLM Group, Associated Energy Group, BNP Paribas, financial services and capital group Burnham Sterling, Mitsubishi HC Capital and Australia’s Qantas Group. The companies, which collectively have committed approximately $200 million, partnered with Burnham Sterling Asset Management to establish the alliance, which aims to accelerate SAF production and provide members with priority access to the fuel. 

SAFFA’s first investment is in technology company Crysalis Biosciences, which is focused on renewing US chemical production infrastructure with new fuel and chemical technologies. Crysalis recently acquired and upgraded the Monarch facility, a decommissioned ethanol plant in Sauget, Illinois, and has just secured environmental approvals to produce low carbon intensity SAF and biochemicals.

“Each partner brings experience and financial expertise to the fund with the ambition to accelerate the availability of SAF by investing mainly in technologically mature SAF-producing projects using, for instance, waste-based feedstocks,” said Airbus. “Investments will be diversified across various SAF production pathways and also by region.

“Each partner may then enter into priority contracts to secure SAF offtakes from the various projects SAFFA will invest in for its allocated volumes. SAFFA is focusing on SAF that is eligible for RefuelEU Aviation or CORSIA (Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation) certification.” 

Photo: Krishnan Narayanan (Clear Sky), Brian Moran (Boeing) and James Hygate (Firefly) sign investment agreement

Tony Harrington

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The International Aerospace Environmental Group (IAEG), a non-profit organisation of global aerospace companies created to collaborate on and share environmental solutions for the industry, has announced the formation of a working group to evaluate technical issues regarding the compatibility of 100% sustainable aviation fuel with airplane systems. With Boeing as lead and Airbus as deputy lead, the IAEG Work Group 13 (WG 13) will also include team members from Dassault Aviation, GE Aerospace, RTX’s Pratt & Whitney, Rolls-Royce and Safran, among others. They will coordinate 100% SAF testing efforts with the test results helping the Work Group inform fuel standards body ASTM International as it develops new specifications for 100% SAF. Meanwhile, Virgin Atlantic has shared headline results from its 100% SAF transatlantic flight last November.

IAEG said its WG13 team will also engage stakeholders, including fuel producers, airports and airlines, to understand what steps may be required to support the transition to SAF.

“This collaboration will help prepare the broader aviation ecosystem for 100% SAF capabilities, as part of the aviation goal of achieving net zero CO2 emissions by 2050,” said Ryan Faucett, Boeing’s VP Environmental Sustainability and IAEG Board Member. “We will share our findings from our SAF compatibility and ground-breaking jet reference fluids research and continue to collaborate with this Work Group to support a more sustainable aviation future.”

IAEG said the Work Group would support “consistent communication” with external stakeholders and educate infrastructure partners and suppliers on what will be needed to ensure operational readiness for 100% SAF.

Added Dr Bruno Costes, Airbus Senior Director of Institutional Relations and Standardisation, and IAEG Chair: “Airbus will bring its knowledge and experience from years of 100% SAF demonstration flights, coupled with our technical expertise in developing new fuel standards.”

Formed in 2011, IAEG has 59 member companies representing 70% of the global aerospace and defence industry. As well as WG 13’s efforts on 100% SAF compatibility, Work Group 3 is focusing on GHG emission reporting guidance.

Meanwhile, Virgin Atlantic has released headline results from its Flight100 transatlantic flight last November, the first commercial aircraft flight to cross the Atlantic using 100% SAF. The flight, following a year’s collaborative effort involving Boeing, Rolls-Royce, Imperial College London, University of Sheffield, ICF and RMI, did not require any engine, airframe or fuel infrastructure changes.

A full lifecycle analysis showed a saving of 95 tonnes of CO2, or 64% of the emissions produced from a standard flight from London Heathrow to New York JFK. Beyond the carbon reductions, the flight produced 40% fewer non-CO2 particulate emissions, so suggesting SAF could have a material impact on improving local air quality at airports and reducing the formation of persistent contrails. Interestingly, the Flight100 SAF produced 1% more energy compared to the same mass of fossil fuel, with the increased efficiency leading to a reduction of the fuel used in flight, with the implication of further environmental benefits.

Following the release of the headline results, the consortium will meet for a “technical deep dive” in early June. “This is a further step to ensure open-source information sharing – a fundamental element of the project,” said Virgin Atlantic.

Photo: The Virgin Atlantic 100% SAF transatlantic flight

Christopher Surgenor

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North America has seen new sustainable aviation fuel agreements this month announced by Boeing and Canada’s WestJet, as well as Air New Zealand for supply in Los Angeles. Boeing has signed deals with multiple SAF suppliers to source 9.4 million gallons of blended product, its biggest single annual commitment. Of this, 4 million gallons are destined for its Pacific Northwest fuel farms and another 5.4 million gallons for distribution through book-and-claim programmes. In Canada, Calgary-based WestJet has bought the first SAF supplied in the country through Shell Aviation’s Avelia book-and-claim system. And in Los Angeles, Air New Zealand is taking delivery this year of 9 million litres (2.4 million gallons) of neat SAF produced in Singapore by renewable energy group Neste. Additionally, Boeing has just partnered with Australia’s Wagner Sustainable Fuels in developing a SAF blending facility in the state of Queensland.   

Boeing’s latest commitment, 60% greater than its SAF acquisitions in 2023, will be used in the company’s ecoDemonstrator programme, through which technologies and practices designed to increase aircraft efficiency and reduce their emissions are assessed using the company’s fleet of testbed aircraft. The blended supplies, all of which will include 30% SAF developed with waste fats, oils and greases, will also be used on Boeing’s commercial operational flights in the US.

The 4 million gallons of blended SAF destined for Boeing’s fuel farms will be produced by renewable energy group Neste and supplied by two US-based independent suppliers – 2.5 million gallons from EPIC Fuels, which operates major facilities in Oregon and Texas, and 1.5 million gallons from Avfuel, based in Michigan.

The additional 5.4 million gallons of blended SAF will also be provided in two batches, with 3.5 million gallons of Neste-made SAF to be supplied by EPIC Fuels, and 1.9 million gallons produced by World Fuel Services and supplied by World Energy. Through a book-and-claim process, Boeing will purchase the CO2 emissions reductions associated with these deals.

As well as driving up demand for SAF, book-and-claim systems authenticate the environmental attributes and ensure that these are allocated to buyers of the fuel as offset credits towards their net zero carbon emission targets.

 “About 20% of our fuel usage is a SAF blend,” said Ryan Faucett, Boeing’s VP Environmental Sustainability. “We continue to increase our use of this fuel to encourage growth in the SAF industry. We are also working to make SAF more available and affordable to our commercial airline customers through collaboration, investment, research and policy development.”

In Canada, WestJet said it had acquired the first SAF to be supplied in the country by Shell Aviation via its Avelia book-and-claim platform, though neither the volume nor timeframe of the fuel deal were disclosed in the airline’s announcement. Avelia uses blockchain technology to confirm transparent tracking of the environmental attributes of SAF, from production to delivery into aviation fuelling networks.

“WestJet is committed to enhancing our position as a first mover in sustainability technologies,” said Angela Avery, the airline group’s EVP and Chief People, Corporate and Sustainability Officer. “Just as we pioneered advancements in winglets and drag reduction, WestJet proudly stands as the first airline to acquire SAF by Shell in Canada. This first step sets the stage for future collaboration and innovation to encourage investments in this important lever for decarbonisation.”

The airline also added to the industry’s growing global pressure for support of SAF, saying it continued to work with government and industry partners to establish a sustainable, long-term commercial framework for the fuel which, “with the right regulatory and investment environment”, was one of aviation’s more viable and scalable decarbonisation pathways.

Christine Bassitt, Shell Aviation’s GM Americas, welcomed the WestJet deal, which not only supported decarbonisation of air transport, but simultaneously expanded the SAF supply chain in Canada to enable greater access to the fuel. 

Air New Zealand’s latest SAF deal was signed in Singapore during a New Zealand government-sponsored business delegation to South-East Asia, led by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, a former CEO of the airline. The fuel will be produced by Neste at its recently expanded Singapore refinery, with the first supplies already being delivered to Los Angeles International Airport, from which the airline flies daily. The total order will be fulfilled by 30 November.

This is the biggest purchase of SAF from Neste by any airline based outside North America and Europe for delivery before the end of 2024, and nine times Air New Zealand’s first SAF acquisition from Neste in 2022. The airline’s total global SAF uptake between April and the end of November is expected to be 850 million litres (225 million gallons), as part of a broader decarbonisation programme that includes the introduction of electric aircraft.

Having committed last year to acquire up to 23 all-electric ALIA aircraft from Beta Technologies, the airline has now announced Wellington-Marlborough as the first route for all-cargo flights, to operate in partnership with NZ Post.  Serving as a commercial demonstrator for zero emission operations, the first aircraft will be based in Wellington, the national capital, at the base of New Zealand’s North Island, while Marlborough Airport in Blenheim, at the top of the South Island, will install charging infrastructure for the plane’s return journey across the Cook Strait.

Kiri Hannifin, Air New Zealand’s Chief Sustainability Officer, said the demonstrator aircraft would be used to gradually prepare the national aviation system for lower emission aircraft ahead of 2030, when the airline plans to phase out its fleet of 23 Q300 turboprops, or potentially convert them to new zero-emission propulsion systems.  

“Decarbonising aviation is of global importance, and in New Zealand maintaining regional connectivity through this transition is of national importance,” said Dean Heiford, CEO of Marlborough Airport. “This is a big step for us on our own sustainability journey that we wouldn’t have been able to achieve without partnership. We’re looking forward to sharing our learnings with other regional airports across New Zealand.”

In neighbouring Australia, Boeing has bolstered its latest commitment to SAF by partnering with Wagner Sustainable Fuels, which has commenced the design and construction of a SAF blending facility in the state of Queensland.

Ther new facility, which is due to open later this year, is located at Wagner’s Wellcamp Airport in the regional city of Toowoomba, west of Brisbane, which accommodates flights ranging from turboprop and narrowbody passenger jets to Boeing 747 freight services by Cathay Pacific, which regularly flies fresh produce from the region to Asia and beyond.

“Wagner’s sustainability goals align with Boeing’s work to advance aviation decarbonisation and energy security through renewable energy including SAF, advanced technologies, operational efficiency and fleet renewal,” said Kim Camrass, sustainability lead for Boeing in Australia, New Zealand and South Pacific.

“We’re proud to contribute to the building blocks of a sovereign SAF production industry with this Australian first facility,” said Matt Doyle, CEO of Wagner Sustainable Fuels, “and anticipate by the end of 2024 this facility will mark the start of the supply of SAF in Australia on a consistent basis.

“In collaboration with Boeing, the Wellcamp blending facility will demonstrate the greenhouse gas emissions reduction benefits of SAF for our customers, provide a focus for federal and state policy makers, and introduce the supply chain to this potential AUD3 billion ($2bn) per year industry.”

Photo: Boeing ecoDemonstrator aircraft refuelled with blended SAF

Tony Harrington

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Coinciding with the start of the 2024 Singapore Airshow, the Singapore government has announced a 1% blending target for sustainable aviation fuel with effect from 2026, rising to 3-5% by 2030, and partly funded by a levy on air fares, making the country the first to ensure departing passengers pay towards helping the transition to lower carbon jet fuel. It has also announced a range of air traffic management initiatives in partnership with other Asia-Pacific nations and pledged increased clean energy production and deployment at its two airports, Changi and Selatar. The measures are contained in the Sustainable Air Hub Blueprint, a strategy document developed by the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) as the ‘State action plan for the decarbonisation of its aviation sector and sustainable aviation growth’, positioning the island state as a regional driver of cleaner air transport. But the blueprint also makes clear that environmental sustainability must be balanced with the nation’s need to remain a competitive aviation hub.

Singapore’s gentle switch to SAF is a key element of the Sustainable Air Hub Blueprint and reaffirms a gradual but increasing focus by Asia-Pacific nations on more sustainable air transport. It also aligns with the 2030 SAF target of 5% agreed late last year by the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines (AAPA), a collective of 15 carriers including Singapore Airlines.   

“To kickstart SAF adoption in Singapore, flights departing Singapore will be required to use SAF from 2026,” says the report.  “We will aim for a 1% SAF target for a start to encourage investment in SAF production and develop an ecosystem for more resilient and affordable supply. Our goal is to raise the SAF target beyond 1% in 2026 to 3-5% by 2030, subject to global developments and the wider availability and adoption of SAF.”

Acknowledging that global SAF supplies are currently less than 1% of global jet fuel demand, the report says capacity will need to increase exponentially to meet projected demand in 2050, adding: “It is critical that we provide fuel producers with a demand signal to give them the confidence to make further investments in SAF production, and accelerate global SAF production.”

CAAS will introduce an airline passenger levy in 2026 for the purchase of SAF to help achieve usage targets, with price to be based on flight length and class of travel, explaining: “As market for the supply of SAF is still nascent and the price of SAF can be volatile, this approach will provide cost certainty to airlines and travellers.”

It suggests economy class passengers could pay a levy of 3 Singapore dollars (US$2.20) for a short-haul flight, 6 Singapore dollars (US$4.40) for a medium-haul flight and 16 Singapore dollars (US$12) for a long-haul flight.

However, the report also specifies: “Environmental sustainability needs to be balanced with the Singapore air hub’s competitiveness to support the growth of the aviation industry in the upcoming decades. The blueprint demonstrates this resolve and sets out Singapore’s medium-term and long-term targets.”  

It reveals procurement of Singapore’s SAF will be centralised, using the air ticket levies “to aggregate demand and reap economies of scale”, and says businesses and organisations will be invited to purchase the low-or-no carbon fuel through this mechanism to help offset “in a credible and cost-effective manner” the travel carbon emissions generated.

The report acknowledges the activation last year by global renewable fuels company Neste of a refurbished refinery in Singapore’s Tuas industrial zone with capacity to produce up to 1 million tonnes of SAF per year, a tenfold increase, making it the largest SAF production plant currently in operation, but added that more of the fuel was needed.

Currently, most of the SAF provided at the plant is exported to other higher-demand markets, due to lower demand from airlines and lack of SAF blending and use mandates across the Asia-Pacific region.

“The presence of an existing petrochemical sector in Singapore provides a good base for new SAF facilities in Singapore,” says the aviation blueprint. “Nonetheless, given the tremendous increase in SAF production capacity required globally, there is scope for more SAF production to be based in Singapore, which will also support the needs of Changi Airport.”

The report advocates greater SAF production across the Southeast Asia region, and potentially more broadly across Asia and the Pacific, but acknowledges shortages of fuel feedstocks and competing demand from sectors such as shipping, road transport and energy act as a constraint on SAF availability.

“There is a need to widen feedstock availability across different regions to unlock more SAF production globally,” says CAAS. “To do this, there should be consistent rules for acceptability and sustainability requirements for feedstock.

“Singapore promotes the recognition of CORSIA’s sustainability criteria as the accepted basis for the eligibility of SAF. We encourage the industry to adopt a feedstock-neutral approach and not exclude any particular feedstock, as long as it meets the CORSIA sustainability criteria and delivers the required carbon emissions reduction.”

To this end, CAAS has joined in a regional study led by Boeing and the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials to develop a SAF roadmap to identify the availability and sustainability of fuel feedstocks in Southeast Asia, ascertain feasible production pathways and identify potential pilot projects to drive regional SAF development.

Beyond progressing SAF, the blueprint also highlights air traffic management initiatives designed to help increase air transport efficiency while reducing emissions during the next five years, including greater coordination of flights between airspace navigation service providers and techniques to optimise flight paths and trajectories.

The report also specifies a range of initiatives to reduce emissions on the ground including increased generation and use of solar power at Changi and Selatar airports, and transition to clean energy propulsion for all airport vehicles by 2040, commencing with introduction of electric-powered light vehicles including cars, vans, minibuses and some forklifts and tractors from 2025.

Photo: Singapore Airlines

Tony Harrington

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The University of Sheffield in the UK has become a key partner in two new programmes supporting the production of sustainable aviation fuel from air-captured carbon dioxide. A mobile Direct Air Capture (DAC) plant developed by London-based Mission Zero Technologies (MZT) has been acquired by the university’s Transitional Energy Research Centre (TERC) to help validate CO2-based SAF ahead of certification. The plant, which has just been activated by MZT, is housed in a six-metre shipping container, enabling its transportation to and use in any location. Another UK enterprise, renewable fuels producer Zero Petroleum, recently announced partnerships with companies including Boeing to help progress development of power-to-liquid SAF, created by combining captured carbon with green hydrogen. Boeing will jointly establish a testing programme for Zero Petroleum’s SAF at the University of Sheffield Energy Innovation Centre, of which the airframer is a founding member.

Mission Zero Technologies says its new DAC plant can retrieve an annual 50 tonnes of ‘high-purity’ CO2 from the atmosphere. Operated remotely, but energised by solar power generated on site, the portable plant is designed to enable rapid scaling and to integrate with load-variable renewable power grids, providing “a plug-and-play source of sustainable carbon on demand for both sustainable use and permanent removal.”

Dr Nicholas Chadwick, the company’s CEO, welcomed the partnership with the University of Sheffield, which, through its Translational Energy Research Centre (TERC), provides one of Europe’s biggest and best-regarded zero carbon energy and research facilities.

Using the MZT technology, TERC will validate end-to-end production of jet fuel created from recycled atmospheric carbon, ahead of the SAF’s certification. It will use water and solar energy sourced on the TERC site.

The companies said DAC was widely recognised as the only technology able to deliver sustainable carbon feedstock to support the UK government’s proposed mandate of 10% SAF use by 2030.

“Direct air capture is a multi-use technology able to drive deep industrial decarbonisation and permanent carbon removal,” said Dr Chadwick. “Through pioneering partnership we’re already realising that potential.”    

MZT said its DAC plant was one of only two such systems globally to secure commercial funding. Its backers include Breakthrough Energy Ventures, the XPRIZE foundation, Anglo American and Stripe, as well as the UK government.

“This first-of-a-kind UK DAC-to-jet fuel project will provide project financiers and developers with the analysis required to scale a UK SAF ecosystem,” said MZT. “By proving DAC’s readiness for industrial scale, it will also pave the way for more fossil-dependent industries to rapidly decarbonise.”

TERC Managing Director Professor Mohamed Pourkashanian said the DAC deal was “hugely exciting for us, and for the world, as we discover more about the potential for decarbonised industrial processes and air transport using novel DAC technology.”

In separate recent initiatives, Zero Petroleum, an emerging UK-based renewable fuels company, announced partnerships with companies including Boeing to progress development of power-to-liquid SAF, created by combining air-captured carbon and green hydrogen.

Boeing will jointly establish a testing programme for Zero Petroleum’s SAF at the University of Sheffield’s Energy Innovation Centre.

The aircraft maker’s partnership with the university is designed help innovative fuel producers to test, mature and scale their SAF, while its tie-up with Zero Petroleum follows other recent SAF collaborations in the UAE, Ireland, Japan, Ethiopia and Brazil.

“The aviation industry needs to move quickly to meet upcoming mandates for de-fossilisation,” said Zero Petroleum’s CEO, Paddy Lowe. “Synthetic fuels provide the only fully scalable solution.”

In Oxfordshire, England, the company recently opened Plant Zero.1, an engineering-scale production facility which it claims to be “the world’s first fully featured synthetic fuel plant,” with on-site capability to capture carbon dioxide directly from the air, generate renewable electricity from solar panels, produce green hydrogen from water electrolysis, and create synthetic fuel.

The SAF currently produced at Plant Zero.1 is an “engineering grade” product, developed for market evaluation and approvals required for ASTM certification. Planning is underway for a second facility, Plant Zero.2, which the company says could start making 100% drop-in synthetic fuels as early as 2025.

“Collaborating with Boeing will now enable us to accelerate the qualification process and put us on course for commercial delivery by 2026,” said Lowe. “Our collaboration with Boeing sets an industry precedent for the recognition and support for synthetic fuels in the global pivot to sustainable solutions.”

Sheila Remes, Boeing’s VP Environmental Sustainability, said that for the next 30 years, SAF would be aviation’s biggest lever in reducing emissions, “but we need more of it now to enable those reductions. Working with innovators around the world such as Zero is crucial as we collaborate to develop new, sustainable pathways to produce and scale up SAF.”

Top photo: MZT’s modular DAC unit at the University of Sheffield’s TERC

Tony Harrington

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A feasibility study has concluded that by 2050, Ireland could generate at least €2.55 billion ($2.8bn) in revenues and create around 1,000 skilled jobs by producing its own sustainable aviation fuel. The research was led by SAF supplier SkyNRG and SAF facilitation and advocacy group SFS Ireland, backed by Boeing and aircraft lessors Avolon and ORIX Aviation. Their report finds the country would need 10 production plants, each with an 80,000 ton capacity, to meet its own EU-mandated SAF requirements by 2050. Significant additional benefits would also accrue if SAF was produced in Ireland for export. It identified the country’s best SAF production pathway as power-to-liquid (PtL), through which renewable energy is used to create eSAF by combining green hydrogen with biogenic CO2. But it said significant research, development and government incentives would be needed to kick-start the sector.

The report, ‘Ireland’s Sustainable Aviation Fuel Opportunity’, was launched by Ireland’s Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Simon Coveney, who said the government was committed to supporting EU and global actions to help cut harmful emissions from aviation, and welcomed “the proactive approach from the aviation sector to progress its own net zero commitments.”

The European Union’s ReFuelEU aviation initiative requires oil companies to gradually increase the proportion of SAF in aircraft fuel supplied at EU airports, increasing from 6% by 2030 to 70% by 2050.

“The European Green Deal has set ambitious targets for reducing net emissions by at least 55% by 2030, when compared to 2019 levels, and to be the first climate-neutral continent by 2050,” said Coveney. “This research shows there are clear future economic benefits from the green economy, which can create new jobs and exciting new business ventures. We look forward to engaging further with industry to explore Ireland’s sustainable aviation fuel potential.”

Ireland currently imports all its aviation fuel. The year-long SAF study was conducted to assess the viability of commercial production using local feedstocks, and focused on a minimum annual output of 100,000 tons of the fuel, commencing before 2030.

Based on RefuelEU SAF mandates for Ireland, the report says three production plants would be needed to deliver 230,000 tons by 2035, with an estimated economic value of €800 million, and 10 plants to deliver 800,000 tons by 2050, valued at €2.55 billion.

It indicated a large potential existed for PtL fuels produced with energy generated by offshore wind turbines but added SAF produced using bio-based intermediates such as renewable natural gas could expedite production to meet the advanced biofuels portion of the ReFuelEU mandate.

To help stimulate development of SAF and green hydrogen sectors in Ireland, the report highlights the need for public-private collaboration and support mechanisms including capital allowances, tax credits, guaranteed minimum pricing and investment incentives. It also urges funding and promotion of SAF technologies through third-level institutions and government entities such as Enterprise Ireland and Science Foundation Ireland.

It recommends SAF production plants should be considered in Ireland’s industrial planning processes, investment is needed in hydrogen storage and transport, and operation and planning of the electricity grid should be optimised to resolve congestion in power delivery.

“Significant progress is required for Ireland to be able to develop eSAF at scale, particularly to ensure renewable power is available on the scale required for production of hydrogen in the required quantities,” cautions the report. “The increased levels of offshore wind power generation that government initiatives are targeting by 2030 will put the country in a much stronger position to develop a domestic SAF industry.” 

Sheila Remes, Boeing’s VP Environmental Engagement and Business Development, said Ireland’s potential for growth in renewable energy made it a prime location for SAF production.

SkyNRG CEO Philippe Lacamp, added: “Ireland has an opportunity to combine its renewable resources, skilled workforce and the right policy environment to create a thriving SAF industry. While there is still work to be done, we are convinced that Ireland can play a significant role in creating this SAF production capacity.”

Darren Carty, Partner, SFS Ireland, said the feasibility study was “the foundation for establishing a low-carbon SAF industry in Ireland. We look forward to advancing collaboration and essential public-private partnerships.”

Andy Cronin, CEO of aircraft lessor Avolon, said: “Large scale deployment of SAF and the transition of the global fleet to new technology aircraft are two of the biggest near-term drivers that can progress the sector’s net zero by 2050 goal. It is going to require large levels of investment and close collaboration across many stakeholders, and we value the minister’s engagement to explore Ireland’s sustainable aviation fuel opportunity.”

Marie-Louise Kelly, CFO of ORIX Aviation, and Chair, Aircraft Leasing Ireland, a group representing the Irish aircraft leasing industry, said the SAF report had identified multiple opportunities for the country. “Along with our sectoral experience [in aviation] we were also able to add the wider ORIX Group’s extensive expertise in renewable power generation to the study,” she added. “We welcome the minister’s commitment to engage on SAF production and look forward to exploring ways to position Ireland at the heart of the global drive to Net Zero 2050.”

Meanwhile, daa, the operator of Dublin and Cork Airports, has welcomed the adoption of the ReFuelEU Aviation regulation.

“There’s a willingness amongst airlines to use SAF but there currently isn’t enough of it available, leading to prices being higher than for conventional fuels,” said Andrea Caroll, Group Head of Sustainability at daa. “The regulation is an important step towards reducing the aviation industry’s carbon footprint that can have a notable impact in the very near term.

“We’re fully committed to reducing overall carbon emissions at our airports and are able to fully facilitate SAF once there is demand and availability. daa is ready to facilitate the increased transition to SAF and we are working hard with airlines and all relevant stakeholders at both airports to meet our net zero 2050 targets ahead of time.”

The airport operator has announced proposals to incentivise airlines to operate lower CO2 emission aircraft at Dublin Airport. A low emissions discount would apply to aeronautical charges, with airlines that fly high emission aircraft charged more.

Photo: daa

Tony Harrington

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The first transatlantic flight of a commercial airliner to be fully powered by sustainable aviation fuel was conducted today by a Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787 on a journey from London Heathrow to New York JFK. The 88% HEFA fuel made from waste fats and supplied by Air bp was blended with 12% synthetic aromatic kerosene (SAK) supplied by US company Virent. Flight100 is the culmination of a one-year collaboration led by Virgin Atlantic involving ICF, Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI), Imperial College London, University of Sheffield, Boeing and Rolls-Royce, in partnership with the UK Department for Transport (DfT). As well as proving the capabilities of 100% SAF, the flight’s non-carbon emissions will be assessed to improve scientific understanding of the effects of SAF on contrails and particulates. The DfT supported the flight with £1 million of funding and has recently awarded nine projects a combined £53 million ($67m) in a second round competition to help scale up the UK SAF production industry.

On board Flight100, which required a specific permit from the UK CAA since commercial flights are certified only to fly with a maximum 50% SAF blend,  was Transport Secretary Mark Harper. “Today’s historic flight shows how we can both decarbonise transport and enable passengers to keep flying when and where they want. This government has backed today’s flight to take-off and we will continue to support the UK’s emerging SAF industry as it creates jobs, grows the economy and gets us to Jet Zero.”

He was accompanied by Virgin Atlantic’s Chief Executive, Shai Weiss, and the airline’s founder, Sir Richard Branson.

Branson was involved in the first-ever biofuels flight of a commercial airliner in February 2008 when a Virgin Atlantic Boeing 747 flew from Heathrow to Amsterdam with one of its four engines partly powered by a fuel made from babassu nuts and coconuts. Nearly 10 years later, the airline made a transatlantic flight using fuel made from waste gases that was supplied by LanzaTech.

Commenting on today’s flight, Branson said: “The world will always assume something can’t be done, until you do it. The spirit of innovation is getting out there and trying to prove that we can do things better for everyone’s benefit.

“Virgin Atlantic has been challenging the status quo and pushing the aviation industry to never settle and do better since 1984. Fast forward nearly 40 years, that pioneering spirit continues to be Virgin Atlantic’s beating heart as it pushes the boundaries from carbon fibre aircraft and fleet upgrades to sustainable fuels.”

Weiss said the flight proved SAF was a safe, drop-in replacement for fossil-derived fuel and the only viable solution for decarbonising long-haul aviation. “It’s taken radical collaboration to get here and we’re proud to have reached this important milestone, but we need to push further,” he said.

The main feedstock for the HEFA (Hydroprocessed Esters and Fatty Acids) SAF supplied for the flight was tallow, a by-product of the meat rendering process and unsuitable for animal or human consumption. The SAK was made from plant sugars, with the remainder of plant proteins, oils and fibres continuing into the food chain.

Following the flight, a full end-to-end lifecycle analysis will be undertaken, accounting for the emissions reduction associated with the use of SAF and the fuel optimisation activities being deployed. Any residual emissions are being mitigated with the use of carbon removals, specifically biochar credits – a material that traps and stores carbon taken from the atmosphere.

Research on the non-CO2 emissions from the flight will help to implement contrail forecasts in the flight planning process, said Virgin Atlantic, adding the data and outcomes will be shared with industry and that the airline would continue its involvement with contrail work through RMI’s Climate Impact Task Force, which is part-funded by Virgin Unite.

Sheila Remes, VP Environmental Sustainability at Boeing, said the flight was another milestone for the two partners following on from the biofuel test flight in 2008 and was a key step in Boeing’s commitment to deliver 100% SAF-compatible flights by 2030.

Simon Burr, Group Director of Engineering, Technology & Safety, Rolls-Royce, whose Trent 1000 engines powered today’s 787 Dreamliner flight, reported the OEM had recently completed compatibility testing of 100% SAF on all its in-production civil aero engine types. “This [flight] is further proof that there are no engine technology barriers to the use of 100% SAF,” he said.

Federica Berra, SVP of Air bp, said: “Collaboration with industry partners is vital to successfully scale SAF, as is long-term policy support to foster supply and demand. Our expert team has worked for months in preparation for this flight, drawing upon their deep knowledge and skills in fuel handling, blending and logistics to ensure product quality and safety standards have been met.”

The flight has been welcomed by others in the UK aviation industry, which is relying on SAF to achieve its net zero emissions by 2050 target. “This is an exciting milestone on the journey towards aviation’s net-zero future. To ensure we achieve this shared goal, the right government policy and price support needs to be in place to see the scalability of affordable SAF to airlines; alongside the investment in and infrastructure for zero and low-emission aviation technologies like hydrogen,” said a statement by cross-sector group Sustainable Aviation.

Jonathon Counsell, Group Head of Sustainability at International Airlines Group and Chair of the UK Jet Zero Council’s SAF Delivery Group, commented: “The test flights flown prove that the aviation industry is technically ready to make the switch to SAF but what we need now is action from governments to incentivise investment and get plants into construction. And that needs to happen quickly as the UK government has committed to five plants in construction by 2025, so time is of the essence.”

The UK DfT’s Advanced Fuels Fund competition is making available around £135 million ($170m) in total for the development of SAF production plants in the UK. Winners in the first window announced last December included Alfanar Energy (Lighthouse Green Fuels project), Fulcrum BioEnergy (NorthPoint), LanzaTech UK (DRAGON) and Velocys (Altalto and e-Alto).

Winning proposals for the second window were announced this month, with funding going to nine projects. Alfanar received a second award for activity not covered by their first window award, otherwise the awards in the second round went to new projects including Abundia Biomass-to-Liquids (A-Jet UK), Arcadia e-Fuels (NABOO), Carbon Neutral Fuels (ASAP-DAC), Esso Petroleum (Solent SAF), Nova Pangaea Technologies (Project Speedbird, which is backed by British Airways), OXCCU Tech (OXEFUEL BIOGENIC), Willis Sustainable Fuels (Carbonshift PtL) and Zero Petroleum (PMZ.2).

The DfT said the fund would help deliver the upcoming UK SAF mandate that will require at least 10% of jet fuel to come from sustainable feedstocks by 2030, which it estimates would save the industry up to 2.7 million tonnes of CO2e annually.

While in the United States, Transport Secretary Harper will co-chair a SAF Investor Summit in New York.

Photo: Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787 is fuelled at Heathrow with the 100% SAF supplied by Air bp before Flight100 to New York JFK

Christopher Surgenor

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Boeing has selected engine maker Pratt & Whitney and its sibling company Collins Aerospace as partners in its groundbreaking X-66A sustainable aircraft programme, in which a former passenger jet will be converted to test the airframer’s futuristic Transonic Truss-Braced Wing (TTBW). The transformation of the 1995-built MD-90 twinjet is part of NASA’s Sustainable Flight Demonstrator Project, which is tasked with trialling a range of new technologies to increase aircraft efficiency and reduce carbon emissions. In a radical retrofit, Boeing will remove the plane’s low, rear-swept wings and instal high-mounted, long, thin wings, supported by diagonal trusses. The new, forward-swept wings are designed to reduce aerodynamic drag, improving fuel efficiency by up to 10%, while the addition of Pratt & Whitney’s GTF (geared turbofan) engines, and new nacelles and engine accessories from Collins, together with other initiatives, could improve total efficiency by as much as 30%. Both companies, part of the RTX aerospace group, will also support ground and flight tests of the experimental plane, which are scheduled to commence in 2028.    

The Transonic Truss-Braced Wing programme is a key element of broader US efforts to decarbonise emissions from commercial aircraft, and will help inform the design of future narrowbody airliners. The former Delta Airlines MD-90 to be used in the programme recently flew from Victorville, California, where it was stored, to nearby Palmdale for modification.

NASA estimates that single-aisle airliners generate more than 50% of global emissions from aircraft, but says technical and economic risks often prevent promising technologies from proceeding to production. It is partnering with the aerospace industry on the X-66A programme to help develop and flight test an advanced airframe and new technologies to improve fuel efficiency while reducing emissions, and to gather ground and flight test data to validate the outcomes.

“We are excited to be working with Boeing on the X-66A Sustainable Flight Demonstrator, making critical contributions to accelerate aviation towards its 2050 net-zero greenhouse gas emission goal,” said Ed Waggoner, Deputy Associate Administrator for Programs in the NASA Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate.

The agency said the research results would help the aerospace industry to progress development of next-generation single-aisle aircraft which meet the goals of the US Aviation Climate Action Plan.   

“This marks an important step in the Sustainable Flight Demonstrator project, advances Boeing’s commitment to sustainability and brings us closer to testing and validating the TTBW design,” said Dr Todd Citron, Boeing’s Chief Technology Officer.

“The X-66A is NASA’s first experimental plane focused on helping the US achieve its goal of net-zero aviation greenhouse gas emissions,” he said. “The learnings from the Sustainable Flight Demonstrator and the partnership with NASA are important elements in the industry’s efforts to decarbonise aviation. We’re grateful for the support from RTX on this critical effort.”  

Geoff Hunt, Pratt & Whitney’s SVP Engineering and Technology, said NASA’s Sustainable Flight Demonstrator programme highlighted how collaboration across the aerospace sector could help expedite the transition to net zero emission flight.

“We’ll work with Boeing to apply GTF engines to the X-66A and help demonstrate the potential of its pioneering truss-braced wing design,” he said. Pratt & Whitney’s geared fan engines, introduced into service in 2016, are designed to offer up to 20% better fuel efficiency than conventional powerplants and certified to operate with sustainable aviation fuel.

Further improving the efficiency of the testbed aircraft will be lightweight engine nacelles, produced by Collins using durable composite and metallic materials. It will also provide control system components for the GTF engines to be used on the testbed aircraft, including their heat exchangers, integrated fuel pump and starter, and air turbine starter and electronic controls.

“Collins has as long history of successful partnerships with NASA, Boeing and Pratt & Whitney, with decades of experience pushing the boundaries of innovation in aerospace,” said the company’s SVP Engineering and Technology, Dr Mauro Atalla. “Now, as part of the Sustainable Flight Demonstrator programme, we will work together to demonstrate new technologies and systems to support the next generation of low-emission single-aisle aircraft that will play an integral role in reducing the environmental footprint of the aviation industry.”    

RTX is also collaborating with NASA on other sustainable aviation projects, including Hybrid Thermally Efficient Core (HyTEC) and Hi-Rate Composite Aircraft Manufacturing (HiCAM), as well as progressing its engines to operate with 100% unblended SAF, hybrid-electric power and hydrogen fuel.

Image (Boeing): A render of the X-66A

Tony Harrington

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The Australian government has accelerated plans to decarbonise the nation’s air transport sector, formally launching the Australian Jet Zero Council and also announcing a AUD$30 million ($20m) funding programme to support local production of sustainable aviation fuels. The Jet Zero Council will focus on end-to-end development of SAF, from production to distribution, and additional measures to reduce emissions and increase aviation fuel security. The Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) will coordinate the SAF funding initiative, which specifies new fuels must be produced using locally-sourced renewable feedstocks. Power-to-liquids and e-fuel pathways are specifically excluded from the programme. Meanwhile, Virgin Australia and Boeing have formed a new sustainability partnership to push for the development of an Australian SAF industry.

“For a country so reliant on aviation for passenger and freight transport it’s essential that we find ways to reduce emissions from this critical sector,” said ARENA CEO Darren Miller. “With abundant agriculture, waste and residue resources, Australia has the potential to support a thriving domestic biofuel industry.”

The two initiatives are in response to strong lobbying of the current and previous governments by the aviation industry to help kickstart local production of renewable aviation fuel and the use of domestically-abundant feedstocks, much of which are currently exported for offshore production of renewable fuels.

They also follow commitments by both Qantas and Regional Express (REX) to invest in sustainable aviation ventures, and a partnership between Virgin Australia and Boeing to help advance SAF production.

The 14-member Jet Zero Council includes representatives of the three airlines, plus Airbus and Boeing, Brisbane Airport, the Regional Aviation Association of Australia, the Department of Defence and the fuel industry, plus federal government finance, investment, research and development agencies.

The body will be chaired by Catherine King, the federal Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, and modelled on the UK’s Jet Zero Council. As well as driving industry efforts to decarbonise aviation, the new council’s work will complement the government’s Aviation White Paper, currently being developed to guide the industry’s next phase of growth and development.

The funding initiative announced by ARENA, which is also one of the founding members of the Jet Zero Council, is offering funding of between AUD $1 million ($670,000) and $30 million ($20m) for commercial or pre-commercial SAF production, focused on engineering feasibility and project development activities or supporting pilot scale demonstrations.

The agency said it would also seek proposals with “novel and scalable approaches across the supply chain”, including innovation in feedstock supply such as aggregation or business models which supported domestic production of SAF.

ARENA’s Miller said the initiative served the dual purpose of leveraging natural advantages to reduce aviation’s emissions and maximising the economic opportunities of feedstock and fuel development. The agency’s Bioenergy Roadmap identified SAF produced from renewable biomass could produce up to 19% of Australia’s aviation sector fuel needs by 2030, as part of a broader AUD $10 billion contribution of bioenergy projects to the national GDP.

“Although Australia currently lacks local production of SAF, it possesses significant potential in renewable feedstocks that could be harnessed to meet both domestic and global SAF supply needs,” ARENA explained.

“Proposals will be required to demonstrate that they use or process and eligible renewable feedstock and production pathway. Power-to-liquid or e-fuel production pathways are not supported under the funding initiative.”

The formation of the Jet Zero Council and the announcement by ARENA of the sustainable aviation funding programme closely follow a AUD$400 million ($267m) commitment by Qantas to establish a dedicated investment vehicle to support sustainable projects and technologies – a fund which the company claims to be the largest created by any airline.

The Qantas Group, which includes Qantas International, Qantas Domestic, Qantas Freight and the low-cost carrier Jetstar, has long called for a local SAF production industry, and last year partnered with ANZ Bank and Japanese energy group Inpex Corporation in Western Australia’s Wheatbelt Region in a project to evaluate both reforestation and decarbonisation using drought-resilient native trees, and the use of native biomass crops and agricultural waste residues as feedstocks for renewable biofuels. The first planting of native trees is expected to occur this year.

Together with Airbus and the Queensland state government, Qantas is also investing in a new alcohol-to-jet production facility planned by the bioenergy company Jet Zero Australia and the US-based energy technology group LanzaJet, which will process locally-sourced agricultural waste including sugarcane to produce up to 100 million litres of SAF per year.   

Meanwhile, Virgin Australia and Boeing have committed to a new sustainability partnership through which they will “prioritise joint advocacy” for the development of an Australian SAF industry, and work together to advance carbon offsets in Australia that support regional development, particularly in indigenous communities. Their commitment came as the airline added the first of eight new Boeing 737 MAX8 jets to its fleet, which was part-powered by a 30% blend of SAF on its delivery flight to Australia.

Photo: Virgin Australia

In his first public engagement since his coronation, King Charles III has broken ground on the New Whittle Laboratory at the University of Cambridge, a £58 million ($73m) facility aiming to become a leading global centre for net zero aviation and energy. Its mission is to halve the time to develop key technologies to support a sustainable aviation industry. The King met the Laboratory’s staff and researchers, as well as aviation industry and senior government representatives, who gathered for an international roundtable as part of an initiative led by Cambridge and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Participating organisations included the UK government, UK Aerospace Technology Institute, the US FAA, NASA, EU Clean Aviation Joint Understanding, Airbus, Boeing, Rolls-Royce and the Sustainable Markets Initiative. The facility will incorporate the Bennett Innovation Laboratory and the UK’s National Centre for Propulsion and Power, built around a fast feedback model pioneered in motor racing’s Formula One.

“We need to completely transform the innovation landscape in the aviation and energy sectors if we are to reach net zero by 2050,” commented Professor Rob Miller, Director of the Whittle Laboratory, which was opened in 1973 by Sir Frank Whittle, a pioneer in the development of modern power and propulsion systems for aircraft. “The New Whittle Laboratory has been designed as a disruptive innovation lab targeting the critical early stages in the lifecycles of technologies, where there are windows of opportunity to translate scientific strengths into global technological and industrial leadership.”

The roundtable shared insights based on global aviation systems modelling capabilities developed through the Aviation Impact Accelerator, a project led by the Whittle Laboratory and the Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership.

Today, reported Miller, it typically takes six to eight years to develop a new technology to a point where it can be considered for commercial deployment in the aerospace and energy sectors, but he said recent trials in the Laboratory had shown this timeframe can be accelerated by breaking down barriers that exist between academia and industry.

“The Lab is designed to work at the intersection of cutting-edge science and emerging  engineering applications, providing fast feedback between the two, and dramatically cutting the time to deliver zero-emission technologies,” added Miller.

The Bennett Innovation Laboratory is made possible through a gift from the Peter Bennett Foundation, himself a Cambridge alumnus and philanthropist. “To tackle the most complex challenges, we need to take a whole systems approach, where innovative technologies can be explored within the context of the realities that may impact their roll out. Rigorous testing using models such as the Aviation Impact Accelerator expedites the process of innovation and implementation.

“We need new ways to work together at speed, which is why the Bennett Innovation Lab will bring together global experts from government, industry and academia, enabling radical collaboration. I believe by using Cambridge’s convening power, this can make a real difference fast.”

Attending the event was the UK’s Transport Secretary, Grant Shapps, who said: “The UK is leading a revolution in aviation, looking to new technologies to cut emissions. Having established the Jet Zero Council three years ago by bringing together government, industry and academia, I strongly welcome the Whittle Laboratory being at the forefront of that endeavour today. This will further help the best minds from the fields of energy and aviation push ever-further and faster with the latest innovations in order to solve the problem of environmentally friendly and affordable flying.”

Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has had a strategic research partnership with the Laboratory since the 1980s. “We look forward to continuing our relationship over the coming decades and we want our engineers to think of the new Lab as their European home – a unique environment where they can participate in a culture that brings together the best global ideas, expertise, software, tools and testing facilities that can help solve the challenge of climate change.”

The Laboratory also has a long association with aero engine manufacturer Rolls-Royce that has delivered hundreds of technologies into its products, said Rolls-Royce Chief Technology Officer, Grazia Vittadini. “Partnerships like this are critical if the UK is to maintain its role as a science superpower and to create high value jobs in the UK,” she said. “The New Whittle Laboratory offers an exciting opportunity to raise this ambition by bringing together cutting-edge science and engineering application in one building with the aim of meeting the challenge of net zero flight by 2050.”

Also represented at the event was US aeroplane manufacturer Boeing. “Our partnership with the University of Cambridge is central to the effort of making aviation carbon neutral,” said Jim Hileman, VP and Chief Engineer, Sustainability and Future Mobility. “As well as helping us to find technology solutions, it is bringing together different companies and academic disciplines from across the sector to drive change at the system level. We are excited by the way in which the New Whittle Laboratory has been designed to break down silos, bringing together a wide range of disciplines to take on the most challenging net zero aviation problems.”

When Prince of Wales, King Charles visited the Laboratory in 2020 and 2022 to encourage the acceleration of sustainable aviation. He hosted an industry roundtable in 2020 in London with the Sustainable Markets Initiative and the World Economic Forum to explore solutions for decarbonising air travel.

Photo (© University of Cambridge, Lloyd Mann): King Charles at the ground-breaking ceremony for the New Whittle Laboratory

Christopher Surgenor

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