Repsol to supply SAF to Atlas Air for cargo flights
Repsol announced that it has begun supplying sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) to Atlas Air for use in all its flights with its customer Inditex from Zaragoza Airport, Spain.
Beginning in November, Atlas Air is incorporating 5% SAF in all its flights.
“With this agreement, we take another step in the decarbonization of aviation. We show that SAF is the future, but also the present. With the upcoming launch of our new advanced biofuels plant in Cartagena (Spain), we are ready to supply the sector with the SAF it needs to realize its decarbonization ambitions,” said Óliver Fernández, director of international aviation, Repsol.
Atlas Air, based in New York (USA), is thus the first cargo airline to use SAF regularly on its cargo flights in Spain, marking a new milestone in the airline sector. The initiative is in line with the commitment of the three companies to reduce their carbon footprint and achieve the compliance measures included in the ReFuelEU Aviation regulations that require use of 2% renewable fuels in 2025, 6% in 2030 and 70% in 2050.
“We are committed to contributing to the sustainability of the aviation sector and appreciate this opportunity to work with our valued partners at Inditex and Repsol,” said Michael Steen, CEO, Atlas Air Worldwide. “It is critical for our sector to work together in driving wider adoption and availability of SAF, which ultimately will have a positive impact on our industry and the environment.”
The agreement also aims to enhance local SAF production, both in terms of refinery capacity and in the sourcing of nearby raw materials, with the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions from the aviation sector.
Repsol is currently production SAF via co-processing in across three refineries in Spain.
The company currently has three new SAF projects in pipeline across Spain including 50,000 tonnes per annum HEFA-SPK SAF production plant in Cartagena, 2,100 tonnes per annum FT-SPK plant in Bilbao and co-processing plant in Petronor.