Air India Partners with Indian Oil for Sustainable Fuel Supply; Will It Fuel India’s Clean Aviation Dream?

Air India has partnered with Indian Oil (IOCL) for the supply of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). The Tata Group airline, in a statement on August 19, said the move aims to promote the adoption of low-carbon fuels in aviation to support global decarbonisation goals and help in the transition towards more sustainable air transport operations. 

“Through this MoU with IndianOil, Air India is committed to support the Government of India’s initiatives to promote sustainable development in the aviation sector and to further its own sustainability goals to achieve the IATA Net Zero by 2050 target,” said CEO and MD, Air India, Campbell Wilson, according to the statement. 

The move by the Tata Group airline aims to strengthen India’s broader goal for green aviation, including its target of 5% SAF blending by 2030 and the development of SAF supply chains across the country, Air India said.

The development comes just days after the Petroleum & Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri had said that the ministry is working closely with various stakeholders to ramp up SAF production in the country. He had also cited the example of IOCL’s refinery in Panipat, which is using used cooking oil to produce SAF. 

“The ministry is working closely with oil marketing companies, airlines, and global technology partners to develop and scale up SAF,” Puri had said, according to a statement by the ministry on August 8. 

While Air India and the petroleum ministry are ramping up efforts to scale SAF production to fuel clean aviation, aircraft manufacturers like Airbus feel sustainable aviation is a distant dream. Speaking at a sustainability-related event in March this year in France, Airbus CEO Guillaume Faury said the aviation industry is likely to miss its carbon emissions target by 2050, citing a lack of proper regulatory framework in place, Bloomberg earlier reported. 

“I don’t think we are wrong to pursue net zero by 2050...Maybe it’s going to take a bit more time, but let’s not be shy in the ambition,” the Airbus CEO had said.