EU Rules Risk Energy-intensive SAF Production Strategies

A report from Sweden’s Chalmers University of Technology has cautioned that under existing European Union (EU) rules, fossil-free aviation fuels may become more expensive and energy-intensive. After analysing different methods for producing synthetic methanol, the study published this week concluded that regulatory bias risks ‘locking in’ less resource-efficient manufacturing methods.

Three “technically feasible” production pathways were studied, which all use biomass to create an identical final product. Two are based on biomass combustion, while a third employs a process called gasification. However, while the study showed the latter to be the most resource-efficient option—offering up to 46 per cent lower production cost and 30 percent lower energy demand—it said the current EU regulatory framework does not favor this option.

According to the study, biomass gasification costs around €820 ($952) a tonne with an energy efficiency of around 46%. Combustion with carbon capture (with or without simultaneous energy production) costs around €1,055 and €1,495 respectively, offering a lower efficiency of approximately 37%.

While Chalmers University argues that gasification can use residual material more efficiently, limited biomass feedstocks are at risk of being diverted elsewhere. According to co-author Henrik Thunman, the study “highlights a structural issue in EU energy and industrial policy” where “regulation risks working against its own objectives.”

Although minimal commercial SAF is currently produced via gasification, it is expected to account for some 35 percent of all aviation fuel in the EU by 2050. To help promote this technically mature but little-used production pathway, Thunman urged “better co-ordination… between climate targets, resource efficiency and industrial feasibility.” This, he believes, will help reduce uncertainty in making “rational investment decisions for the large-scale expansion of SAFs in the coming years."