Iberia Maintenance to use SAF in its engine test benches

Iberia Maintenance announced that it will use 5% sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) on engine test bench throughout 2024 at the La Muñoza facility near the Adolfo Suarez Madrid-Barajas airport.

The company said the use of SAF is expected to reduce 115 tonnes of CO2 emissions per annum. The SAF will be supplied by Cepsa, produced at the refinery’s Huelva Energy Park, from organic waste and used cooking oils.

“We are very proud to have taken another step towards the decarbonisation of the sector with the use of SAF in our test bench, which will allow us to reduce our CO2 emissions by 115 tonnes. Collaboration, technology, and innovation are the essential elements to achieve the industry’s goal of achieving net zero emissions by 2050,” said Teresa Parejo, Director of Sustainability at Iberia.

The use of SAF is part of the environmental sustainability strategy of the International Airlines Group (IAG), which aims net zero emissions by 2050.

Iberia, Iberia Express and Cepsa have signed a collaboration agreement for the development and research on sustainable fuels.

Moreover, Spanish multinational oil and gas firm Cepsa produces SAF and other second-generation biofuels in its energy parks and permanently markets SAF in five of the main Spanish airports.

The company has started the construction of the largest second-generation biofuels plant in southern Europe, together with Bio-Oils, with a €1.2bn ($1.3bn) investment. This facility, which will be opened in 2026 in Palos de la Frontera (Huelva), will have a flexible production capacity of 500,000 tonnes of SAF and renewable diesel.

As part of its Positive Motion strategy, Cepsa, intending to promote the decarbonisation of the aviation sector, aims to lead the production of SAF in Spain and Portugal, with an annual production capacity of 800,000 tonnes by 2030.