Irish budget airline group Ryanair (FR/RYR) has announced a partnership with Neste Holland to provide a 40% blend of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) for flights at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS/EHAM).
The partnership will see around a third of Ryanair’s Amsterdam flights use the SAF blend which the industry sees as the immediate solution to lower the carbon footprint of the aviation industry.
Ryanair’s Boeing 737 Max aircraft are certified to fly with a 40% blend of SAF and United Airlines has actually operated a 737 Max using 100% SAF.
Ryanair’s Director of Sustainability, Thomas Fowler said: “We are delighted to announce this landmark deal with Neste which will see Ryanair uplift this new 40% SAF blend. SAF is a cornerstone of our Pathway to Net Zero by 2050 decarbonisation strategy and this new blend will power a third of Ryanair flights at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol while reducing greenhouse gas emissions by over 60%. We look forward to growing our partnership with Neste as we work toward achieving our goal of operating 12.5% of Ryanair flights with SAF by 2030.”
It is hoped that by using SAF at Amsterdam, the flights will have a 60% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.
Jonathan Wood, Neste’s vice president Europe, Renewable Aviation added: “We’re excited to support Ryanair work towards its decarbonisation goals by supplying our Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel™. SAF is a key element in achieving aviation’s emission reduction goals. The aviation sector is now at a tipping point as demand increases, and policy proposals are on the table in the EU and UK to promote demand and supply of SAF. Neste is leading the transformation to SAF and investing as we speak to increase global SAF production capacity to 1.5 million tons per annum 2023. It is great to see Ryanair as the first short haul carrier take our SAF at Amsterdam Airport Schiphol and we look forward to our joint journey towards a more sustainable future.”
