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Shell unveils ambition to become a leading SAF producer by 2025

Global oil and gas major Royal Dutch Shell plc (Shell) has announced its ambition to produce around 2 million tonnes of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) per annum by 2025. It also aims to have at least 10 percent of its global aviation fuel sales as SAF by 2030. The announcement came as Shell published two reports looking at how the aviation sector can accelerate its progress towards decarbonization.

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Shell has declared its ambition to produce around 2 million tonnes of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) per annum by 2025. It also aims to have at least 10 percent of its global aviation fuel sales as SAF by 2030.

The announcement came as Shell published two reports looking at how the aviation sector can accelerate its progress towards decarbonization.

The first publication “Decarbonising Aviation: Cleared for Take-off ” is a joint report by Shell and Deloitte, and based on the views of more than 100 aviation industry executives and experts.

It says that the current global industry targets are not ambitious enough and that the aviation sector should aim to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050.

The report outlines 15 ways to reduce emissions between now and 2030 that will help aviation to reach net-zero by 2050.

Key highlights from the Decarbonising Aviation: Cleared for Take-off report include:

  • Aviation has often been considered a sector that will decarbonize later than others. This attitude should be replaced by a greater sense of ambition.
  • Choosing SAF as the primary means of decarbonization has the advantage of avoiding the need to redesign aircraft or airport infrastructure.
  • More ambitious efforts are required and investments must start sooner if SAF is to be adopted at scale within 15 years.
  • The uptake of certified carbon offsets must significantly increase in the short term, so they can play as full a role as possible in the early stages of decarbonization.
  • In parallel, there is a need to invest in less mature propulsion technologies like electric and hydrogen-powered aircraft, and for these to play a role in short-haul flights before 2050.

Call for “ambitious and feasible” SAF blending mandates

To accelerate the decarbonization of aviation, Shell believes a comprehensive regulatory regime is needed, one that encourages consistent customer demand and provides fiscal support to drive infrastructure development, new technologies, and SAF production plants.

To this end and to stimulate demand, Shell has been calling for and fully supports the introduction of “ambitious and feasible” SAF blending mandates.

Currently, sustainable aviation fuel accounts for less than 0.1 percent of the world’s use of aviation fuel. We want to help our customers use more SAF. With the right policies, investments, and collaboration across the sector, we can accelerate aviation’s progress towards net-zero by 2050, said Anna Mascolo, President of Shell Aviation.

Shell to have SAF production capacity by 2025

Shell’s companion report “Decarbonising Aviation: Shell’s Flight Path outlines how the company, as one of the world’s largest suppliers of aviation fuel and lubricants, can help its aviation customers decarbonize.

It announces Shell’s ambition to produce around 2 million tonnes of SAF a year by 2025. Currently, Shell supplies SAF made by others.

Achieving the new ambition would make it a leading global SAF producer and support the decarbonization of the aviation sector. The SAF production ambition would align with Shell’s target of becoming a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050, in step with society.

The ambition was announced just days after Shell said it will build a biofuels facility at the Shell Energy and Chemicals Park Rotterdam, the Netherlands, with the ability to produce 820 000 tonnes of low-carbon fuels a year, including SAF.

Last week we announced that we have taken a final investment decision for a new biofuels plant at our Rotterdam Energy and Chemicals Park. Shell also offers certified nature-based carbon credits to offset emissions, and we are exploring other ways to help aviation get to net zero, including hydrogen power, said Anna Mascolo.

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