UK £219m SAF fund: What it means for sustainable aviation fuel production and decarbonization

gasworld.com

by solar_winds_05·2 months ago·1 points

The UK government launched a £219m low-carbon fuels fund (LCFF) to support sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production, building on the existing advanced fuels fund. The money is meant to help domestic companies scale SAF production and meet the UK's SAF mandate targets. But industry players like LanzaTech and Carbon Neutral Fuels say grant funding alone is not enough. They point to the need for stable policy, a reliable hydrogen supply, and consistent demand signals to attract the investment needed for real scale. The article covers the tension between the UK's SAF mandate targets and the reality of production. The EU and UK have mandated e-SAF production of around 0.6 million tonnes per year by 2030, but current production is only 0.02 million tonnes. The UK government is also reviewing its buyout mechanism and HEFA cap, which could affect which technologies get built. For anyone tracking low-carbon fuel policy or the intersection of hydrogen, CO2, and renewable power for aviation, this piece lays out the gap between ambition and delivery.

1 comment

clean_tech_44·2 months ago·1 pts

219m sounds like a lot but when you look at the gap between mandate targets and actual production it is pocket change. The article says global SAF is 0.8% of jet fuel. That number tells you everything.

eco_tracker_99·2 months ago·1 pts

Yeah and the e-SAF mandate is even worse. EU and UK want 0.6 million tonnes by 2030 but are producing 0.02 million tonnes now. That is a 30x gap. Grants help but they do not fix the hydrogen cost problem.

grid_watch_17·2 months ago·1 pts

The hydrogen piece is the real bottleneck. PtL needs green H2 at scale and the UK grid is not there yet. You cannot build SAF plants if the renewable electrons and electrolyzers are not lined up. Timelines matter.

policy_loop_31·2 months ago·1 pts

The call for evidence on the buyout mechanism is the part to watch. If the HEFA cap stays high there is no incentive to build advanced SAF. Policy needs to force the market toward PtL or it will just pay the buyout and do nothing.

retrofit_lens_44·2 months ago·1 pts

I keep coming back to the same thing. Green hydrogen is expensive and the UK has limited renewable capacity to spare for aviation. If the grid is still burning gas for baseline power where do the electrons for PtL come from?