The aviation industry’s efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions are progressing with advances in fuel transitions. Conventional jet fuel is made from petroleum, and its increased use pushes up the levels of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere. When thinking about "decarbonizing the skies," the key to success is using recycled aviation fuel made from used cooking oil and urban trash, also known as Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). Energy companies have an essential role to play in creating supply chains for SAF.
Used Frying Oil to Power Jet Engines Flying With Japan's First Mass Produced SAF
Airplanes will take to the skies fueled by oil already used to make tempura. Compared to petroleum-based fuel, Sustainable Aviation Fuel emits far fewer greenhouse gases because it is made from used materials such as cooking oil, wood chips, used plastic, and used paper. The reason for this low impact is that plants are the original raw materials processed to create SAF, and flora absorb CO2 as part of photosynthesis to live and grow.
Yokohama-based Saffaire Sky Energy LLC commenced mass production of SAF for the first time in Japan in FY2025. The company was established by Cosmo Oil Co. Ltd., which is a subsidiary of Cosmo Energy Holdings Co., Ltd, along with the other founding partners JGC Holdings Corporation and Revo International Inc. The new firm will produce 30,000 kiloliters of SAF annually from 100% used cooking oil to be manufactured at Cosmo Oil's Sakai Refinery in Sakai-city, Osaka. The company will supply this sustainable fuel to Japan Airlines, All Nippon Airways and DHL Express, a major German international logistics company.
As people and goods increasingly move around the world, demand for air transport services will grow. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) forecasts that the worldwide passenger number for air travel will exceed 5 billion people for the first time in 2025. Meanwhile, the Japanese government has a goal of making the nation a tourist-oriented nation and boosting the number of visitors to Japan from overseas to 60 million by 2030.
Aircraft CO2 emissions are far higher than trains. At one time, people in Europe traveling by air who were aware of climate change criticized themselves feeling a sense of “flight shame,” a judgement that was also cast onto air travel more generally. This growing sense of crisis is the reason SAF was first introduced for distribution across Europe. Global demand for SAF is now also expected to grow rapidly. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) aims to reduce aviation industry greenhouse gas emissions by 5% relying on SAF to achieve this 2030 target. On the domestic front, Japan’s government has set the goal of replacing 10% of aviation fuel consumption across the nation with SAF by 2030.
In addition to tackling the conditions creating global warming, Japan is also confronting the serious issue of energy security. Saffaire Sky Energy producing SAF from used cooking oil procured domestically in Japan is a boon. This company's production of "domestically produced fuel" is highly significant exactly because Japan relies almost entirely on fossil fuel imports from overseas.
The key to the Saffaire’s SAF production is the stable supply of raw materials. In Japan, there is a system already in place whereby the majority of used cooking oil is collected from businesses. The firm procures used cooking oil to produce SAF from restaurant chains such as Marugame Seimen, a noodle shop chain operated by Marugame Udon, Inc. and Sushiro, a major Kaiten Sushi chain operated by Akindo Sushiro Co. Ltd.
In contrast to this, much of the cooking oil used in households is simply thrown away. It is now important to build a framework to lift the contribution of cooking oil from residential homes. To achieve this, the firm has partnered with large shopping outlets such as AEON Mall to place collection containers for used cooking oil at five commercial facilities across Osaka Prefecture near the Sakai Refinery.
Recycling has become a common practice for aluminum cans and plastic (PET) bottles with much investment into systems to collect, process and turn the discarded items into resources again. Can Japan develop the same customs of offering used oil for processing instead of putting it in the trash? This is now a question for every individual consumer.
Cosmo Energy Holdings, Co., Ltd.
Cosmo Energy Group will deliver energy to society in a stable way at the same time as ensuring we achieve Carbon Net Zero (virtually zero greenhouse gas emissions) by 2050. This is our main goal, and it is also what society is demanding.
One of the methods for achieving this target is Sustainable Aviation Fuel(SAF). Unlike automobiles, it is very difficult to power aircraft flight with electricity. In place of this, we believe that SAF is an effective countermeasure against global warming, and we are certain that demand within the aviation industry will grow rapidly.
After cooking with frying oil, many households may simply throw it away. But it is now important to raise awareness that spent cooking oil can be transformed into aviation fuel. It is not only the airlines buying our SAF that are our customers. We want to share the awareness of environmental value more widely, not just with companies, but also with individual consumers.
As an energy company, in addition to providing stable supply, we want to create new value through the provision of energy with less of an environmental impact. The word "symbiosis" forms part of our management vision and it is essential to strive for a positive symbiosis between our planet, humans and society. We think that the trend toward net-zero carbon emissions will not be reversed, even if there will be some fluctuations in determination and changes in the speed of action.
I am sending a message to all our employees that I want them to take on many new challenges. The oil business has always emphasized the importance of safety and stability. Of course, these conditions are essential, however, at the same time I am telling our people to consciously challenge themselves in areas other than those they already have experience in, and encouraging them "to go for it" knowing full well that there might be failures.
We now produce SAF from used cooking oil, but this is actually our first time we have procured, processed, and shipped large quantities of products that are not fossil fuels. This is the first step for us in considering the commercialization of fuel made from sources other than petroleum. Looking ahead to the future, these kinds of possibilities will likely expand to include, for example, using hydrogen as a raw material to make products.