Key Takeaways
• ReFuelEU Aviation Mandate starts January 2025, requiring 2% SAF at EU airports, rising to 70% by 2050.
• Airlines warn of high SAF costs and supply shortages, risking competitiveness against non-EU carriers.
• The European Union keeps stiff targets; industry demands more policy support and financial aid for SAF.
The European Union 🇪🇺 is pushing forward with a bold plan to reduce carbon pollution from planes by making airlines use more sustainable aviation fuels, often called SAF. This effort, known as the ReFuelEU Aviation Mandate, begins in 2025 and has sparked strong discussion between lawmakers and the airline industry. While many agree that cleaner fuels are needed to slow climate change, there is growing worry about whether enough of these fuels exist—and if airlines can afford them right now.
What Is the ReFuelEU Aviation Mandate?
The heart of this new approach is the ReFuelEU Aviation Regulation, which officially takes effect in January 2025. Under this regulation, each refueling at European Union 🇪🇺 airports must include a certain amount of SAF, increasing over the years. These are the key targets for airlines:
- By 2025: At least 2% of all fuel uplifted must be sustainable aviation fuels.
- By 2030: This rises to 6%.
- By 2035: 20% must be SAF.
- By 2050: The requirement climbs to 70%.
There’s also a unique rule inside this plan. By 2030, at least 0.7% of the fuel must be synthetic e-fuels, sometimes called power-to-liquids or PtL. These special fuels are made using renewable electricity instead of oil, and the mandate for e-fuels goes up slowly to 35% by 2050. The European Union 🇪🇺 believes this approach is needed because only these synthetic fuels can fully replace regular jet fuel without causing more greenhouse gases.
Current Progress – Hitting the First Target?
The European Commission, which runs policies for the European Union 🇪🇺, has looked at current production and says things are on track for the first 2% target at EU airports by 2025. Looking ahead, they believe the region can reach the 6% SAF requirement by 2030 because factories are being built and investment is happening.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) agrees. Their research says that by 2030, there should be enough production—using a mix of different ways to make SAF—to follow the new rules across the region.
But official optimism doesn’t reflect some tough facts. In 2024, sustainable aviation fuels made up only 0.53% of all jet fuel used globally. That’s less than a tenth of next year’s European goal, showing just how quickly new sources would need to grow.
There’s also the issue of cost. Right now, SAF costs three to five times more than regular (fossil-based) jet fuel. Building the factories needed to produce these new fuels is expensive, and getting the correct raw materials—like waste oil or special crops—is difficult. Because of these issues, EASA described the SAF market as “inherently volatile,” meaning prices can swing up and down quickly, and it’s risky for companies to invest.
Airlines Speak Out: “The Goals Are Too Hard”
March 2025 saw a rare moment of unity among airlines. Seventeen large European carriers, including well-known names like Lufthansa, Ryanair, Air France-KLM, and IAG, put out a joint letter criticizing the ReFuelEU Aviation Mandate. They raised three main problems:
- Not enough SAF is available today.
- SAF is much more expensive than what airlines normally use.
- If only European airlines have to pay these costs, they could lose out to foreign competitors who don’t have such strict rules.
Willie Walsh, Director General of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), supported the group’s concerns. He said, “We can’t just stand back and pretend that these targets are meaningful and can be achieved. They were never going to be capable of being achieved.” Airline leaders worry about the financial impact, as many carriers already run on thin profit margins.
According to a report the airlines referred to, following environmental rules from the EU has driven up their costs by 200% over the last ten years. In 2024 alone, the added costs hit €15 billion. For an airline, that’s enough money to buy about 300 new, more fuel-efficient planes. These higher costs raise the question of how to pay for SAF when ticket prices are already a touchy subject for many travelers.
What the Industry Wants Changed
A group of six major aviation groups—including Airlines for Europe, ACI Europe, and large aircraft builders—warned that unless the European Union 🇪🇺 provides stronger policy help, airlines may face a shortage of European-made SAF and may be forced to import even more expensive fuels from outside Europe.
To avoid this, they’re asking for several things:
- Share the Risk: The aviation sector wants the public and private sectors to share the financial risks by offering capital grants (free money for building SAF plants) and loan guarantees (so banks will lend more easily to SAF projects).
- Better Feedstock Access: They want priority access to the raw materials used for making SAF, such as farm waste, recycled cooking oil, or renewable electricity for synthetic fuels.
- Policy Flexibility: The groups believe the ReFuelEU Aviation Mandate needs to allow for more flexibility, so airlines and suppliers have options if supplies lag behind strict targets.
The industry insists that it supports the push for sustainable aviation, but says more help is needed to reach these targets without harming their ability to compete with airlines in regions that do not have such rules.
The Other Side: European Commission’s Response
The European Commission, which sets the direction for the European Union 🇪🇺, says it is committed to keeping the SAF targets as they are. EU Transport Commissioner Apostolos Tzitzikostas plans to meet with airline leaders in 2025 to listen to their worries. But so far, the Commission isn’t showing signs of backing away from its regulatory course.
Later in 2025, the Commission is set to reveal a Sustainable Transport Investment Plan, which will show how it plans to help pay for cleaner transport—including sustainable aviation fuels. Details are not yet public, but this could help address the funding gap raised by industry leaders.
There’s also a built-in “flexibility mechanism” allowing suppliers to spread out their SAF blending requirements across all European airports until 2035. The Commission believes this approach already gives enough breathing room. Officials have stated that adding extra ways to reduce targets or create delays is “unwarranted at this stage.”
Why Sustainable Aviation Fuels Matter
Sustainable aviation fuels are made in ways meant to cut total pollution. They can come from different sources:
- Used cooking oil
- Waste from farms or forests
- Special crops grown for fuel
- Gases captured from landfills
- Synthetic fuels made from hydrogen and renewable power
When used in planes, SAF can lower carbon pollution by at least 70% compared to fossil jet fuel—sometimes much more, depending on how it’s made and what it’s made from. These fuels can be used in today’s airplanes with little or no engine change, making them one of the few tools to cut flying emissions in the next 10–20 years.
That’s why the European Union 🇪🇺 is making SAF use the law. Planes are harder to electrify than cars or trains. With no large electric planes ready for normal use, mixing SAF into regular jet fuel is the fastest way to cut pollution from flying. For additional details on how the EU is moving forward with alternative jet fuels, you can visit the European Union Aviation Safety Agency’s SAF overview page.
The Bigger Picture: What’s at Stake?
This mandate isn’t just about cutting pollution. It will shape airline ticket prices, job growth in clean energy, and the future of air travel in and out of Europe.
- For Immigrants and International Travelers: Higher fuel prices could lead to slightly more expensive flights, which can affect how often people visit family across borders or move for work or study. Some fear the rules may also make airlines drop less profitable routes, reducing choices for flyers.
- For Airport and Aerospace Workers: The rules could mean more jobs building new SAF plants and developing new engine technology. However, if Europe becomes too expensive for air travel, some worry about jobs moving elsewhere.
- For Airlines: High costs and tight rules may make it harder for European airlines to compete with non-EU carriers, especially on long routes where SAF rules do not apply outside the region.
- For the Environment: If the targets succeed, Europe’s entire air travel sector will become a testing ground for greener flying that the rest of the world might one day follow.
Looking Ahead: Can the Mandate Succeed?
There are major hurdles to clear before the ReFuelEU Aviation Mandate reaches its long-term goals. Key factors will decide what happens next:
- Supply Scaling: The entire supply chain—farms, chemical plants, transport companies—must expand quickly and safely to produce more SAF.
- Price Competition: Unless costs drop, using so much SAF could force airlines to pass those costs to travelers, or to absorb losses that could threaten jobs and service.
- Global Alignment: If the rest of the world adopts similar targets, costs may balance out. But if not, European Union 🇪🇺 airlines face a possible disadvantage against competitors not bound by strict SAF rules.
VisaVerge.com’s investigation reveals that some experts believe only a serious push—including direct government funding and strong demand from airlines—will make it possible for SAF to reach the levels included in today’s law. Without this, the targets may become far-off goals that few can meet.
Controversies and Differing Viewpoints
While almost everyone agrees that cutting aviation pollution is necessary, opinions split on the details:
- Industry Leaders: They say the right goals are in place, but more public help is needed. They warn that moving too fast without enough fuel or support could cost jobs, raise prices, and cut European airlines out of the market.
- European Union 🇪🇺 Politicians: They argue that strong rules will steer private money into clean energy, create jobs in the new SAF sector, and push Europe into a leadership spot for clean aviation technology.
- Environmental Groups: Some think the targets should go even higher to force faster action, especially with air travel’s big role in warming the climate.
- Economists: They worry about energy prices and the risk of shifting jobs and firms to places with weaker rules, a problem called “carbon leakage.”
Summary and Next Steps
As of 2025, the ReFuelEU Aviation Mandate is in force. Airlines must now include at least 2% sustainable aviation fuels in fuel they use at European Union 🇪🇺 airports—a share that will climb sharply in the coming decades. While European agencies claim the supply and production can keep up with early-stage targets, airlines warn of short-term supply shortages, high costs, and global competition issues.
The path forward will be shaped by the European Union 🇪🇺’s willingness to support investment, the cost and sourcing of SAF, and the larger world’s reaction to bold climate-linked aviation mandates. Stakeholders from airlines and airports to travelers and industry workers will keep a close eye as the rule’s first effects become clear.
For those affected or interested in up-to-date information, the European Commission’s official transport page is a good source for future policy changes and public updates.
In short, sustainable aviation fuels are at the center of a big change in European flight. The ReFuelEU Aviation Mandate will be a test of how quickly industry, government, and society can work together to create a future for flying that is both greener and still affordable. The choices made in these next few years might shape global air travel for decades to come.
Learn Today
Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) → Alternative jet fuel from renewable sources, significantly reducing carbon emissions compared to traditional fossil-based jet fuel.
ReFuelEU Aviation Mandate → EU regulation requiring increasing percentages of sustainable aviation fuel in aircraft refueling at EU airports.
Synthetic e-fuels (PtL) → Fuels produced using renewable electricity and carbon capture, serving as drop-in replacements for conventional jet fuel.
Carbon Leakage → Economic risk where stricter local environmental rules lead businesses to relocate operations to regions with weaker regulations.
Flexibility Mechanism → Policy allowance letting SAF suppliers average blending rates across EU airports, easing strict blending requirements until 2035.
This Article in a Nutshell
Europe’s ReFuelEU Aviation Mandate, starting 2025, aims to revolutionize flight by requiring sustainable aviation fuels. Airlines say costs and supply are challenging, while lawmakers push bold climate goals. Success will depend on investment, cooperation, and managing ticket prices—and could reshape global air travel if the approach works long-term.
— By VisaVerge.com
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