[An] alternative source of jet fuel proposed by government and industry is “sustainable aviation fuel” (SAF), a type of biofuel that can be made from oilseeds such as canola, as well as sugar cane, agricultural and forestry “residues” such as barley stalks, and even used cooking oil and municipal organic waste…
SAF is used in low levels by airlines as part of their fuel mix, but it is not made in Australia.
Australia exports huge volumes of tallow and agricultural feedstocks such as canola to refineries overseas, and then imports the refined SAF.
While six refineries make biodiesel and ethanol, none are dedicated to SAF.
“The fact that we basically grow canola here, then we ship it overseas, turn it into sustainable aviation fuel and then buy it back, is nuts,” Infrastructure Minister Catherine King [has said].
“The technology is there,” Stephen Forshaw, who represents Airbus in Australia, said. “We have the ability to do this.”
So, how much homegrown jet fuel could Australia actually produce, what would it cost, and how long would it take to produce it at a scale that would be viable?
“The fact that we basically grow canola here, then we ship it overseas, turn it into sustainable aviation fuel and then buy it back, is nuts,” Infrastructure Minister Catherine King [has said].
I mean isn’t this the same argument with regards to oil refineries? they’re not profitable and need government assistance
If it is profitable why hasn’t anyone stepped up?
Perhaps we’re slow on the uptake.
Seriously, If other countries have been refining their own SAF, it’s possible. That’s why a number of refineries are already at different stages of development. As that guy in the article says: “Nothing in the fuel business is ever cheap, other than the final product.”
Yeah looks like Qantas wants more help from the government:
To support this, the Group engaged ICF International, in partnership with Airbus, to model a policy roadmap for Australia. The Developing a SAF industry to decarbonise Australian aviation report (PDF) recommends the government:
Implement a SAF mandate. Deploy $1.5 billion in capital grants and production incentives tied to carbon emission reduction.This policy suite, if successful in catalysing a domestic low carbon fuel sector, has the potential to contribute over $12 billion to the economy by 2040 creating or sustaining over 70,000 jobs.
As part of the 2024-2025 Federal Budget, several measures were introduced to support the development of a domestic low carbon fuel sector, including elevating low carbon fuel into one of the prioritised sectors with potential access to the $1.7bn Future Made in Australia Innovation Fund.
https://www.qantas.com/corporate/sustainability/our-planet/sustainable-aviation-fuel
no, you’d need millions of hectares of arable land.
so you either take the land we use now away from agriculture OR you chop down even more forest
fast rail (doesn’t even have to be very fast rail) would solve the intercity need eg Sydney - Melbourne is one of the busiest flight routes on the planet.
Knowing Australia, we’ll go with whatever makes it worse long term.
