SAS Scandinavian Airlines, Germany’s Lufthansa Group (which includes Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Germanwings, Eurowings and Brussels Airlines), KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, and Oslo Airport operator Avinor have all signed agreements with Statoil Aviation to supply 2.5 million liters of biofuel over a 12-month period to the refueling facility at Oslo Airport.
Consisting of a 50% biofuel mix, this equates to around 3,000 flights between Oslo and Bergen and makes Oslo the first major airport in the world to offer a regular supply of biofuel as part of daily operations from March 2015. It is also the first time that sustainable biojet fuel will be used in the airport’s hydrant system.
SAS and budget carrier Norwegian Air Shuttle last week conducted the first biofuel flights in Norway, operating scheduled flights to Oslo from Trondheim and Bergen, respectively, with a 48% mix of biofuel.
SAS said it has reduced its total CO2 emissions by around 13% since 2005, and said it is the only airline in Scandinavia with an all-next-generation jet aircraft fleet. From next year, the airline will begin rolling out even more energy efficient short- and long-haul aircraft, namely the Airbus A330 Enhanced and A320neo, followed by the A350.
SAS said it aimed to use synthetic fuel on an increasingly regular basis in the next few years, and expected biofuel to become competitive with the fossil fuel alternative. For this to happen, the airline said, “a general environment and tax policy will be required from governments, based on aviation being a form of internationally competitive public transport with thin profit margins.”
While initial biofuel deliveries at Oslo will probably come from used cooking oil, major players in the Norwegian power and forestry industries are now exploring the possibility of forest-based large-scale production of biofuel for aviation in the course of a few short years.
Avinor CEO Dag Falk-Petersen said: “It’s not out of the question that we in Norway could achieve large-scale production of sustainable aviation biofuel at a competitive price in 2020.”
There are currently two industrial Norwegian initiatives for production of biofuel and both are looking into the possibility of producing both bio-diesel, for the heavy transport sector, and bio-jet fuel for aviation. It is anticipated that a single biofuel plant would be able to produce enough biojet fuel to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from Norwegian aviation by 10%-15%.
Not only could biofuel production reduce Norway’s greenhouse gas emissions, but it could also increase value creation from the country’s forests. This would, Avinor pointed out, be an “important step towards a sustainable industry in Norway and a shift towards the renewable zero discharge society.”
Marius Holm, head of the environmental foundation ZERO, said: “This is a good start towards developing a market for aviation bio-fuel. The fact that Avinor is contributing to making Oslo Airport the first hub in the world where all airlines have the opportunity to use bio-fuel illustrates that a green change is possible.
At the same time, it's important that the authorities step up with policy instruments that promote greater use of biofuel in aviation.”
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