SpiceJet unveils blueprint for sustainable aviation fuel initiative in India

June 18, 2021: In line with its ambitious target to fly 100 million domestic passengers on Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) blend by 2030, SpiceJet, under the aegis of World Economic Forum (WEF) is leading WEF’s initiative of ‘Clean Skies for Tomorrow’ (CST); which has now manifested in formulation of a blueprint, ‘Deploying Sustainable Aviation Fuels at Scale in India’.
This blueprint consists of the India case study on biofuel, feedstock availability, technology pathways and policy recommendations etc.

The CST coalition, led by the WEF brings top executives and public leaders in India, across and beyond the aviation value chain under one roof to eventually lead the transition to SAFs as part of a meaningful and proactive pathway for the industry to achieve carbon-neutral flying. A pioneer of sustainability in Indian aviation, SpiceJet plays an active role towards scaling up the use of SAF in India and serve on the prestigious Clean Skies for Tomorrow Steering Committee to advance the development of a SAF industry in India.

Ajay Singh, chairman and managing director, SpiceJet, said, “Aviation is a key economic enabler; yet increasing access to air travel and its benefits must not come at the cost of the environment. To ensure we collectively rise to the challenge, I proudly serve on the Steering Committee of the World Economic Forum’s Clean Skies for Tomorrow Coalition, working to advance the use of sustainable aviation fuels. This project and this new, seminal report are exactly what we need to speed aviation’s decarbonisation.”

“Last week, I had the privilege of representing the CST Coalition at a Sustainable Markets Initiative Aviation Taskforce meeting, convened by The Prince of Wales. The India blueprint was a prominent topic on the agenda, recognised as an innovative undertaking and one that also serves as a replicable model for other economies that wish to accelerate and invest into the SAF industry.”

Dr. Christoph Wolff, head of mobility industries and system initiative, member of the executive committee, WEF said, “Decarbonizing India’s aviation sector is possible through urgent and sustained action by both private and public sectors. To accelerate the process, the WEF’s Clean Skies for Tomorrow India Coalition, together with McKinsey & Company, developed a detailed blueprint outlining how to significantly increase use of sustainable aviation fuels in India. This report is an important first step in achieving our collective goal of flying 100 million passengers in India on sustainable aviation fuel by 2030.”

The contours of the blueprint document were shared with the minster of petroleum & natural gas Dharmendra Pradhan in December ‘20 wherein important aspects like bringing Bio-Jet fuel under GST (@5 percent) and a viability gap funding towards CAPEX for industry plants and to airlines for sustainable use of SAF were discussed. Subsequently in April ‘21, the minister formally released the blueprint and kindly consented to setup a taskforce under the direction of secretary, ministry of petroleum and natural gas, to expedite this critical agenda and ensure sustained engagement.

The airline successfully used SAF on a demo flight from Dehradun to Delhi in August 2018. SpiceJet operated India’s first TaxiBot for towing an aircraft to the runway at T2, IGI Airport, Delhi. TaxiBot is a semi-robotic towing tractor that helps save up to 85 percent of fuel consumed during taxiing besides substantial reduction in CO2 emissions and noise levels.