Renewable fuels developer Raven SR has signed memorandums of understanding (MoUs) with Japanese airlines All Nippon Airways (ANA) and Japan Airlines to supply sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for ten years.

Raven will supply each airline with 50,000t/yr of SAF starting from 2025, with the volume rising to 200,000t/yr by 2035. The firm plans to begin commercial production in 2025 in California, incrementally increasing capacity by 200,000t/yr up to 2034 in the US and Europe, with an eye to serving the two airlines’ international routes.

US oil major Chevron—a strategic investor in Raven—has taken a 50pc stake in a waste-to-hydrogen project in California. The project will use Raven’s hydrogen and synthetic fuels production technology, a non-combustion thermal, chemical reductive process that does not require fresh water as a feedstock for steam reformation.

2025 – Raven’s planned first commercial SAF production

Japanese conglomerate Itochu is another strategic investor in Raven, as part of its plan to establish a supply chain of SAF and renewable diesel both at home and overseas.

“As part of our climate transition strategies, ANA is dedicated to being an industry leader with our environmental commitments. This announcement with Itochu and Raven will be of great importance and support our mid- and long-term carbon reduction goals,” says Hideo Miyake, executive vice-president for procurement at ANA.

UN agency the International Civil Aviation Organization has set a target for the aviation industry to reach net zero by 2050, with Japan’s airlines aiming to reduce or offset 15pc of emissions from 2019 levels from 2024. However, global SAF supply is estimated to comprise only 0.03pc jet fuel consumption currently, which Raven attributes to a limited supply of organic waste feedstock such as used cooking oil and tallow.

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Author: Polly Martin