Several airlines (e.g. SAS and Aegean Airlines) and the transport and logistics company DHL, signed agreements with Swedavia to participate in the incentive programme for sustainable aviation for 2023. Through the programme, Swedavia offers airlines and other industry players a discount of up to 50 per cent of the premium cost when they choose to refuel with sustainable aviation fuel. The first application period for this year's program opened in January and enables additional industry players to participate. The total amount to be distributed within the incentive programme in 2024 is SEK 40 million over three application periods, where market share is the deciding factor in the first stage.
“Various aviation actors are helping to accelerate the transition work. We can see this not least through increased interest in the SAF incentive programme, where Swedavia offers discounts to airlines that choose to refuel with renewable aviation fuel. At Swedavia, we are also seeing an increased ambition among our partners as the industry continues to reset and invest in new initiatives in the wake of the pandemic. The ongoing recovery in air travel is taking place in parallel with the continued ambitious transition work, and Swedavia is raising its level of ambition further by doubling the pot in the programme for the second year in a row. Reducing dependence on fossil fuels is an important part of the transition, and the incentive programme is an important piece of the puzzle", says Charlotte Ljunggren, director of marketing and commercial development at Swedavia.
Swedavia’s aim is for air travel of the future to be sustainable, and the company became completely fossil-free in our own operations in 2020. Fossil-free HVO100 diesel is now being used at our airports. In order to provide an incentive that will help airlines in their own transition efforts, Swedavia has offered the SAF incentive discount programme since 2020 to promote sustainable refuelling. By purchasing sustainable aviation fuel through the incentive programme, airlines and other aviation operators can reduce their climate footprint and contribute to the much needed climate transition in the aviation industry. Swedavia is therefore driving the climate transition regarding aviation and wants to see a large-scale production in Sweden of fossil-free fuel in the future, which would also lead to more jobs being created.
SAF incentive programme
- 2024 marks the fifth year in a row that Swedavia's incentive programme for renewable aviation fuel will be offered to airlines operating at its airports. In 2024, a pot amounting to SEK 40 million is being offered for the second year in a row. All airlines that operate scheduled and/or charter flights from any of Swedavia's ten airports are eligible to participate in the programme.
- Through the incentive programme, Swedavia help to cover airlines refuelling costs when they use renewable aviation fuel at up to 50 per cent of the premium cost. The lower cost limit for the programme is SEK 125,000, which equates to a minimum premium cost of SEK 250,000 for participating airlines.
- Airlines that wish to participate in the incentive programme must contact Swedavia and apply for participation. Based on a review of the application and the funds remaining within the allocated pot for the programme, Swedavia then makes a decision and reserves the amount for the applying airline.
Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF)
- Sustainable aviation fuel is fossil-free and produced from renewable raw materials, for instance used cooking oil and residual waste. The fuel reduces fossil carbon dioxide emissions by up to 80 per cent from a life cycle perspective.
- To meet current fuel requirements, the renewable biofuel is blended at a level of up to 50 percent with traditional fuel and used in the airport's existing fueling system and infrastructure.
- Since 2016, Swedavia has also procured sustainable aviation fuel equivalent to the fuel needed for its corporate travels annually and since 2019, has coordinated with the public sector and the private sector regarding joint call-offs for sustainable aviation fuel. In 2024, the Västra Götaland Regional Council, SOS Alarm and the Port of Gothenburg are participating partners with a fuel pool of 292 tonnes of fossil-free biofuel, which is an increase of 124 tonnes compared to 2023.