European airlines likely met, and may have exceeded, the European Union’s 2% sustainable aviation fuel, or SAF, target in 2025, marking a sharp turnaround from earlier concerns about supply shortages, according to industry officials. Early data suggests carriers reached or surpassed the mandate requiring SAF use at regional airports, up from roughly 0.6% the previous year. Final figures are expected later this year.
Florian Guillermet, head of the European Union Aviation Safety Agency, told Reuters, “We believe we will be at or even above the 2% in 2025.” The milestone comes as the EU pushes to reduce aviation emissions and reliance on traditional jet fuel. The bloc plans to raise the SAF requirement to 6% by 2030, with a portion coming from synthetic fuels. Despite the progress, airlines continue to warn that higher future targets could be difficult to meet due to limited supply and high costs, underscoring ongoing tension between climate goals and industry economics.
-NAFB