Ryanair To Power 33% Of Amsterdam Flights With 40/60 SAF Blend

Simple Flying

By Linnea Ahlgren

Published Apr 20, 2022

The LCC is looking to inch closer to its 12.5% SAF by 2030 goal with a new agreement with Neste Holland.

Ryanair has remained optimistic that the strikes will only affect less than 1% of its European flight operations, and ditching Belgian airports seems to be something it can further afford. Photo: Tom Boon | Simple Flying

The Irish low-cost carrier has set one of the most ambitious SAF targets in the industry - to use 12.5% sustainable aviation fuel by 2030. While production and availability are still nowhere near the required amount, a recent agreement with Neste takes the airline one incremental step closer to its goal.The Dutch branch of the Finnish fuel provider, Neste Holland, will supply Ryanair with enough SAF to power approximately a third of the carrier's flights out of Amsterdam Schiphol Airport (AMS) with a 40% biofuel blend.The airline says that the blend will reduce Ryanair's CO2 emissions from the flights by as much as 60%. Thomas Fowler, Ryanair's Director of Sustainability, commented on the agreement,

“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.”

Ryanairâs-Head-of-Sustainability,-Steven-Fitzgerald,-and-Nesteâs-vice-president-Europe,-Renewable-Aviation,-Jonathan-Wood-at-AMS-Airport-1

Production set to increase more than tenfold in two years

Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel is an advanced biofuel that reduces greenhouse gas emissions by 80% over its lifespan compared to conventional fossil-based jet fuel. The company currently has a capacity of 100,000 tons of SAF per year.

However, with a new refinery in Singapore in the works and additional investment in the Rotterdam facilities, capacity is set to increase to 1.5 million tons annually by the end of 2023. Jonathan Wood, Neste's VP for Europe, Sustainable Aviation, said,

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.”

Thomas-Boon-Generic, Ryanair-3 — Photo: Tom Boon/Simple Flying

One-third of flights to three destinations

Ryanair's main airport in the Netherlands is Eindhoven, 120 km southeast of Amsterdam, from where it flies to 50 destinations. Meanwhile, the budget carrier operates three routes from the more congested and slot-controlled Amsterdam Schiphol, flying to Dublin in Ireland and Costa del Sol and Malaga in Spain.

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According to Ryanair's recently released sustainability roadmap, the airline's ambitious target of going carbon neutral by 2050 will be achieved to 34% by the increased use of SAF. Another 32% of decarbonization will come from technological and operational improvements, 24% through offsetting and 'other economic measures', and 10% through the optimization of air traffic control. Check out more aviation news from Simple Flying here.