British Airways takes 1st SAF delivery from Phillips 66 Ltd.

Photo: British Airways

British Airways has taken delivery of the first batch of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) produced by Phillips 66 Ltd.’s Humber Refinery near Immingham in the U.K., which is producing thousands of metric tons of SAF from waste feedstock. British Airways will add it into the existing pipeline infrastructure that directly feeds several U.K. airports, including London Heathrow. The SAF bought by the airline will be enough to reduce lifecycle CO2 emissions by almost 100,000 tons.

British Airways’ parent company International Airlines Group is investing $400 million over the next 20 years into the development of SAF, and British Airways has existing partnerships with several companies to develop plants and purchase the sustainable fuel.

“Being the first airline to source sustainable aviation fuel produced at commercial scale in the U.K. is another breakthrough moment for us and the airline industry,” said Sean Doyle, British Airways’ chairman and chief executive. “Our supplies of SAF from Phillips 66 … will play a role in our commitment … to power 10 percent of flights with SAF by 2030.”

Darren Cunningham, general manager of the Humber Refinery, said the plant currently refines almost 132,000 gallons of waste feedstocks a day.

Biobased Diesel Daily first announced the offtake agreement between British Airways and Phillips 66 Ltd. back in December.