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China regulator launches nation's first 'green' jet aviation fuel centre

The Civil Aviation Authority of China (CAAC) released the country's very first technical centre for sustainable air travel fuel (SAF) that concentrates on basic setting and product research study, a report released in the aviation regulator's news channel revealed late on Tuesday.

The new centre, based in the southwestern city of Chengdu, will take the lead in drawing up industry policy and setting up requirements for products and quality control, according to two SAF industry executives with direct understanding of the launch.

China, the world's second-largest aviation market which takes in about 11% of the jet fuel used internationally, is anticipated to unveil this year its policy on making use of SAF for 2030 that might spur billions of dollars of investment, reported in May.

In spite of a few test flights, China does not produce SAF commercially for domestic usage. Biofuel firms are pouring more than $1 billion into structure China's first plants to turn waste cooking oil into air travel fuel for export and fulfill domestic need as soon as Beijing mandates the fuel's use on planes to cut emissions.

CAAC also intends to establish a Chinese certification system for sustainable fuel.

The centre is establishing test centers for new products, according to the report on the regulator's news site, which added that China's total aviation fuel consumption is most likely to exceed 50 million metric tons each year by 2030 and using SAF might reach 2.5 million heaps annually.

SAF can be made from sustainably sourced sustainable waste and residues such as used cooking oil and animal fat waste, or processed from renewable power-based hydrogen.

(source: Reuters)