ReFuel-EU: Decision for green kerosene makes e-fuels in cars illusory

After the EU agreement on the "Green Fuel Regulation" ReFuelEU for aviation, the environmental umbrella organization Transport & Environment sees it as a crucial step to stimulate the European market for green aviation fuel.

"The regulation is pioneering work 'made in Europe.' It is the world's largest commitment to green fuels for aviation. The EU has doubled its commitment to synthetic fuels, which are crucial for the decarbonization of the sector, and has restricted the use of some unsustainable biofuels in aircraft," said Matteo Mirolo, Aviation Manager at Transport & Environment (T&E).

The Green Fuel Law for aviation - known as ReFuelEU - stipulates that from 2025, all airlines will be required to use a minimum proportion of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) when departing from an EU airport. Starting at 2 percent in 2025, the percentage will rise to 6 percent in 2030 and to 70 percent by 2050. These targets will include conditions for synthetic fuels (e-kerosene) - the only type of SAF that can be sustainably scaled up to meet the sector's fuel needs. Negotiators agreed on a target for synthetic fuels of 1.2% between 2030 and 2031 and 2% between 2032 and 2035. This is a significant increase from the European Commission's original proposal (0.7% between 2030 and 2035) and a major success for the European Parliament.

No Tank Over Plate: Exclusion of Problematic Raw Materials

The negotiators also agreed on the definition of sustainable biofuels in aviation. They excluded some of the most controversial biofuel raw materials, such as food crops and palm oil by-products (PFADs). However, some problematic raw materials that are neither sustainable nor scalable are still part of the regulation. Fuel suppliers will, for example, be able to meet the targets with animal fats and used cooking oil (UCO). Both are limited in availability. Animal fats are by-products of slaughtering. Their inclusion carries the risk of shortages in other industries where they are used, such as the animal feed industry. Palm oil is often the chosen substitute for animal fats. Additionally, the negotiators did not set a cap on the use of UCO. This could mean that the demand from European aviation could exceed the supply across Europe, increasing dependence on imports and the risk of fraud.

Inclusion of Non-CO2 Effects of Aviation

In a historic change, the non-CO2 effects of aviation were included in the final regulation. Non-CO2 emissions account for two-thirds of aviation's climate impacts, but previous efforts to regulate them legally have been unsuccessful. From now on, ReFuelEU opens the door to regulating fuel quality. This ensures they have lower aromatic concentrations and sulfur content. This is a significant step to reduce the non-CO2 climate impacts in aviation, but also to improve air quality around airports, according to T&E.

"This deal and the regulation agreed last week on ETS SAF certificates give airlines the certainty that green fuels and especially synthetic kerosene will be cheaper and widely available. The introduction of SAF can now begin, but there is still much to be done," explained Matteo Mirolo.

To ensure the success of SAFs, there is now a need for an industrial support policy for synthetic kerosene, but also stricter safety measures to ensure that no unsustainable biofuels sneak into aircraft tanks.

"The hurdles in market ramp-up once again highlight that we need all available e-fuels for aviation, leaving nothing for road transport. For road transport, there are more efficient and cheaper alternatives with electromobility," Mirolo further judged.