Vinci Airports launches sustainable aviation fuel at Budapest airport in Hungary

Photo: Vinci Airports

Vinci Airports announced Jan. 27 that Hungary’s Budapest airport, part of the Vinci Airports network since June 2024, has passed the audit criteria for the introduction of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) through its subsidiary, Airport Fuel Supply Ltd.

This achievement addresses one of today’s biggest current challenges for airports operators—combining the increase of air-mobility demand with the need to protect the climate.

In addition to all actions implemented to reduce direct airports emissions such as energy efficiency, electrification of vehicles, development of renewables and more, in the short to medium term the introduction and wider use of SAF is currently one of the solutions to act on airport scope 3 by reducing aircraft emissions.

Budapest airport has been testing the commercial use of SAF since 2023, in cooperation with MOL, Wizz Air and AFS Ltd. airlines, with the goal of meeting a stringent set of sustainability criteria.

Budapest airport’s subsidiary, AFS Ltd., successfully passed last November, and thus acquired the required EU certification from the International Sustainability and Carbon Certification System GmbH. 

This certification is a prerequisite for the airport operator to provide airlines with the minimum 2 percent SAF from Jan. 1, 2025, as required by the relevant regulation.

The raw materials used in the production of SAF include vegetable or animal fats that cannot be recycled elsewhere, which are converted into a premium-quality renewable product through special processes, thus reducing the greenhouse-gases emitted by aircraft.

This new generation of sustainably produced fuel, in its pure form, could reduce greenhouse-gas emissions by up to 80 percent over its lifecycle compared to fossil jet fuel.

SAF is currently permitted to be blended with conventional fossil-based kerosene up to 50 percent to ensure compatibility with aircraft, engines and fueling systems.

SAF is also compatible with existing airport infrastructure, minimizing additional investments.

“Sustainable aviation fuel emits about 80 percent less carbon dioxide compared to conventional kerosene and can therefore make a significant contribution to the decarbonization of the aviation industry,” said Francois Berisot, the CEO of Budapest airport. “The availability of sustainable aviation fuel at Budapest airport is a very important milestone and will greatly contribute to the future reduction of Budapest airport’s indirect carbon emissions from its corporate value-chain activities.”

In addition to reducing indirect emissions, and in line with Vinci Airport’s environmental policy, Budapest airport’s priority is to reduce its carbon-dioxide emissions by over 90 percent from direct airport operations by 2030 at the latest, and achieve the Airport Carbon Accreditation Level 5 of the Airports Council International (ACI Europe), which certifies that an airport has reached and maintains a net-zero carbon balance on its direct scopes (scopes 1 and 2), and has addressed indirect emissions sources (scope 3).

Anticipating the European ReFuelEU aviation regulation, which requires the progressive use of SAF, Vinci Airports was a pioneer in the distribution of SAF in France and Europe from 2021, and today offers SAF in its platforms in Toulon, Saint Nazaire and Clermont-Ferrand airports in France, London Gatwick in the U.K. and now Budapest in Hungary.