Europe's green jet fuels see upside in Iran war

BRUSSELS:

At a plant near Frankfurt, in Germany, hydrogen and CO2 sourced from a chlorine factory and a biogas facility nearby are piped into a reactor and -- after a few more steps -- turned into jet fuel.

Interest in such synthetic propellants is growing as the Iran war pushes Europe to reassess its dependencies, raising hopes of a turnaround for the struggling sector, according to industry experts.

The conflict "made the business case for e-SAF much stronger," Mariano Berkenwald, head of strategy at Ineratec, the firm operating the Frankfurt facility, told AFP.

Before the war squeezed Europe's jet fuel supplies, electro-Sustainable Aviation Fuel (e-SAF), was largely touted for its climate friendly credentials.

Doing away with oil, it can reduce by 90 percent planet warming emissions from aviation -- itself responsible for up to four percent of all greenhouse gases released in the European Union -- proponents say.

Brussels has made it a key component of a push to green up transport, mandating fuel suppliers to blend at least 1.2 percent of the stuff into the kerosene made available at EU airports by 2030 and 35 percent by 2050.

But the sector has struggled to take off, bogged down by high costs and low investments.

Founded 10 years ago, Ineratec launched production last year -- and its small German facility is currently the only one in Europe making the propellant.

About 40 more projects under development are stuck in a rut, unable to secure the funding needed to start production plants, said Camille Mutrelle of advocacy group Transport & Environment (T&E).

Europe needs roughly nine more bigger factories to meet the 2030 target but "we still have zero", she said.

Ineratec's plant churns out some 2,500 tonnes of fuel a year, enough to power only about 50 transatlantic flights.

With the clock ticking, Brussels, which recently scaled down the ambition of other climate goals, notably for cars, has been under pressure to scrap the target or at least the hefty fines suppliers would face for not meeting it.