Five companies have been awarded a share of the government’s £165 million Advanced Fuels Fund as it continues to strive to make the UK a “global leader in sustainable aviation fuels”.
The successful projects include SAF plants in Teesside, Immingham and Ellesmere Port, which will convert everyday household and commercial waste, such as black bin bags, into sustainable jet fuel.
Other chosen projects are an SAF plant in Port Talbot which will convert steel mill off-gases into sustainable jet fuel, and the early development of an SAF plant using carbon capture and hydrogen made from renewable electricity.
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The government predicts the five projects will produce more than 300,000 tonnes of SAF per year, as well as reduce CO2 emissions by an average of 200,000 tonnes each year once they are fully up and running.
Launched alongside the government’s Jet Zero Strategy in July 2022, the Advanced Fuel Fund is designed to support the government’s vision of making the UK a world leader in SAF by accelerating the development of SAF production plants.
The government aims to have at least five commercial SAF plants under construction in the UK by 2025.
Transport secretary Mark Hopper said: “Using waste of by-products to refuel airliners sounds like a flight of fancy, but thanks to £165 million of government funding, it’s going to help us make guilt-free flying a reality.
“It’s exactly this kind of innovation that will help us create thousands of green jobs across the country and slash our carbon emissions.”