Petrobras launches coprocessed SAF in Brazil
- Petrobras
- Dec 11
- 2 min read
The first deliveries of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) were announced by Petrobras Dec. 5 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
The company is the first to produce, entirely in Brazil, the fuel that receives sustainability certification according to International Civil Aviation Organization rules.
The volume of 3,000 cubic meters (792,516 gallons) was sold to aviation fuel distributors operating at Tom Jobim International Airport in Galeão.
This volume corresponds to approximately one day of consumption at airports in the state of Rio de Janeiro.
SAF can replace conventional aviation kerosene without requiring modifications to aircraft or refueling infrastructure.
This makes it a practical and quick solution for reducing emissions in the aviation sector.
“SAF, produced through coprocessing at Petrobras’ refining park, is a solution that contributes to meeting the decarbonization goals of the aviation sector,” said Petrobras President Magda Chambriard. “It is a competitive product that meets rigorous international aviation standards. We are offering the national market the possibility of meeting global demands, anticipating compliance with CORSIA, which is an international program for reducing emissions from international flights.”
The anticipation of SAF production in relation to current legislation is fundamental for the aviation market, considering the sector’s future demands.
From 2027 onwards, airlines in Brazil will have to start using this type of fuel on international flights, following the rules of the ICAO’s Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation program, and on domestic flights, based on the Future Fuel Law.
Petrobras SAF has CORSIA certification from the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification System GmbH.
It is a fuel with lower carbon intensity because it uses a percentage of raw material of vegetable origin, which is processed together with mineral aviation kerosene.
Currently, Petrobras is certified to use technical corn oil (TCO), a residual raw material, or soybean oil, with a projected reduction in net CO2 emissions of up to 87 percent in the renewable portion.
The resulting product is chemically identical to mineral fuel, but with a portion derived from sustainable raw materials.
The fuel for the first deliveries was produced at the Duque de Caxias Refinery (Reduc) in Rio de Janeiro, which is certified to produce and market SAF.
Reduc is authorized by Brazil’s National Agency of Petroleum, Natural Gas and Biofuels (ANP) to incorporate up to 1.2 percent of renewable raw material in the production of SAF via this route.
The Henrique Lage Refinery (Revap) in São José dos Campos in the Brazilian state of São Paulo has already conducted tests for the production of SAF using the coprocessing route of vegetable oil with traditional petroleum streams.
It is expected that, also in 2026, the Paulínia Refinery (Replan) in the state of São Paulo, and the Gabriel Passos Refinery (Regap) in Minas Gerais will also begin producing and marketing the fuel.
