SAF In India: What Does The Roadmap Look Like?

There have been advancements in the SAF ecosystem in India, but how long will it take to scale up production?


Photo: Harsh - S | Shutterstock

Recently, AirAsia India hit the headlines for operating a domestic flight using Indian-made sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). And while it was a significant milestone, it remains to be seen just how long it will take for green fuel to move up from special flights to something more mainstream.

India is picking up speed in this space, but significant progress will likely take time, and for good reason. Producing SAF remains expensive, and for an industry with high fixed costs and razor-thin margins, production will have to scale to bring costs down for airlines to move beyond just token flights.

Net zero by 2070

India’s sustainability efforts within the aviation industry are part of its larger plan of reaching net-zero emissions by 2070. The Indian government has also become part of a list of fewer than 60 countries that have submitted their LT LEDS (long-term low emission development strategy) to UNFCCC. And the extensive plan will require tens of billions of dollars over the years.

Indian authorities are working on a plan to mandate a 1% blending of SAF with regular fuel for all Indian carriers by 2025. For that to happen, India would need 140 million liters of biofuel annually. If the country becomes slightly more ambitious and goes for a 5% target, the amount of SAF required per annum will shoot up to 700 million liters. So, what is being done about it?

Initiatives

The recent AirAsia India flight resulted from the Air India group, IOCL, Praj Industries, the Ministry of Civil Aviation, and the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas coming together to develop indigenous solutions for SAF production.

Praj Industries, an industrial biotech company focusing on the environment, energy, and agri‐process businesses, produced the SAF in its R&D Center in Pune, India. The technology, developed by Gevo for production of SAF from corn (the commonly available feedstock in the US), was adapted and further developed by Praj for SAF production from feedstock commonly available in India, such as sugarcane.

Government-owned Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited is also planning to start supplying SAF to airlines in the next 2–3 years, with Bharat L Newakar, chief general manager (R&D), BPCL saying that they are exploring tie-ups with OEMs to “collaborate and come out with demonstrable technology.”

Indian Oil Corporation, too, is aiming to set up a plant in India in the coming years as a joint venture with US-based clean energy technology company to make SAF with alcohol-to-jet technology.

Where do airlines stand on this?

Even with all these initiatives, the cost of SAF will have to come down substantially to make it an attractive proposition for airlines. The government is even proposing that airlines consider taking stakes in SAF-producing ventures to have skin in the game.

But that would mean spending time and energy in an industry that is removed from their core airline business. The government’s plan to mandate a 1% blend by 2025 is also being viewed with some skepticism. Mint quotes a person in the know as saying,

“On the one hand, there seems to be an upcoming mandate of 1% blending of sustainable aviation fuel from 2025, and on the other, the airlines have been proposed to participate in a green fuel joint venture. It looks to be too ambitious, and some timelines may have to be postponed.”

The SAF ecosystem, not just in India but globally, is still evolving, and there are many challenges to overcome, such as production volume and transportation logistics. While green-fuel initiatives around the world are encouraging, the road to mainstreaming SAF, particularly in India, is a long one.