British Airways parent International Airlines Group (IAG) has announced an investment in start-up biofuel producer Nova Pangaea Technologies to boost Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) production in the UK.
Nova Pangaea Technologies (NPT), based on Teesside, plans to develop the first commercial waste-to-fuel production facility in the UK, producing advanced biofuels from non-food agricultural waste and wood residues.
It will use waste from sawmills and forestry operations, including sawdust and wood trimmings, along with wheat straw and corn stover – the leaves, stalks and cobs of maize plants – left by harvesting.
The biofuel will, in turn, be used to produce SAF.
Construction of the plant is scheduled to begin later this year, with the facility due to produce biofuels by 2025.
NPT is one of several companies in the UK preparing to develop SAF-production facilities. The UK government’s ‘SAF mandate’ requires at least 10% of jet fuel be made from sustainable feedstocks by 2030 – amounting to 1.2 million tonnes or 1.5 billion litres of fuel.
Details of the mandate, expected to be introduced from 2025, have yet to be confirmed.
Airline association Iata has estimated worldwide production of SAF last year at just 450 million litres at most.
IAG’s unspecified investment in NPT comes in addition to the $865 million it has pledged to spend on SAF investments and purchases.
The group, which also owns Iberia, Aer Lingus and Vueling, has committed to 10% SAF use across its airlines by 2030. It has agreements in place for 250,000 tonnes of SAF, 25% of its target of one million tonnes by 2030.
IAG chief executive Luis Gallego said: “SAF is the only realistic option for long haul airlines to decarbonise.
“We have set a goal to use 10% SAF by 2030 at IAG. And we are not just buying SAF, we are willing to invest in developing the industry, but we need governments in the UK and Europe to act now to encourage further investment.”
Sarah Ellerby, Chief Executive of Nova Pangaea Technologies, said: “Our facility will be the UK’s first commercial plant of its kind and will play a crucial role in decarbonising the aviation sector, as well as providing local employment opportunities.
“We’re confident of beginning construction later this year and producing second-generation biofuels by 2025.”