TotalEnergies has set the wheels in motion to increase its production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), with more than 740 million euros ($808 million) of investment in multiple projects. The move comes in response to calls from its aviation customers.
From 2028, the company said it will be in a position to produce half a million tonnes of SAF, adding that this would be enough to cover the gradual increase in the European SAF blending mandate, set at six percent by to 2030.
The company said in its statement that it will invest 400 million euros to turn the Grandpuits site into a zero-crude platform, focused mainly on producing SAF from circular raw materials such as animal fat and used cooking oil. Grandpuits will be able to produce 210,000 tonnes/year of SAF from 2025, and new investment has been announced to produce a further 75,000 tonnes/year by 2027.
In early June, TotalEnergies said it will double SAF production at Grandpuits, increasing the site’s annual production capacity to 285,000 tonnes, nearly double the capacity announced in 2020.
In Normandy, TotalEnergies said it has started co-processing SAF from used cooking oil at its Gonfreville refinery. The company plans to increase annual production at the site to 40,000 tonnes from 2025. In addition, following technical work with its aerospace partners, TotalEnergies will produce an additional 150,000 tonnes/year of SAF by co-processing produced HVO biodiesel in La Mede. as soon as this production method is approved by ASTM.
In La Mède, TotalEnergies said it has invested 340 million euros to convert its refinery into a biorefinery. The biodiesel produced in La Mède is already used to make SAF at the TotalEnergies Oudalle plant near Le Havre. TotalEnergies has added that it is studying a new investment to have the capacity to process in La Mède, in 2024, 100 percent of waste from the circular economy (used cooking oil and animal fat) to produce biofuels and SAF by co-processing .
Beyond France, TotalEnergies aims to produce 1.5 million tonnes/year of SAF by 2030 at production units in Europe, the United States, Japan and South Korea, representing 10 percent of world market on this date, according to the company’s statement.
“TotalEnergies is taking steps to meet strong demand from the aviation industry to reduce its carbon footprint. Sustainable aviation fuel is essential to reduce CO2 emissions from air transport, and its development is fully aligned with the company’s climate ambition to reach net zero by 2050, together with society,” said Patrick Pouyanné, president and CEO of TotalEnergies.
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