Corporate demand could drive sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) purchases by up to 1.9 million tonnes by 2030, representing a significant increase over the estimated 323,000 tonnes of SAF purchased in 2024, according to a new study by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Airbus and Accenture. In the same timeframe, the study notes that corporate purchases could enable businesses to help accelerate aviation toward lower-emission air travel.
The study, ‘SAF Environmental Attribute Certificate (EAc) Market,’ finds that corporate purchases represent an opportunity to create additional investment in the sustainable aviation fuel market. By enabling businesses to pay for the additional cost of producing SAF through environmental attribute certificates, the study suggests that corporate engagement could expand the aviation industry’s capacity to decarbonize. The study cautions, however, that rising SAF prices, complex carbon accounting rules and opaque purchasing systems will need to be addressed in order to realize the opportunity.
SAF Production Faces Cost, Supply Constraints
Sustainable aviation fuel represents one of the aviation industry’s key opportunities to decarbonize. SAF has the potential to dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions from air travel, depending on the feedstock and production process used. However, its limited production and significantly higher cost have constrained its use within the overall aviation fuel mix. Global SAF production is expected to reach 2.4 million tonnes in 2026, or 0.8% of jet fuel consumption, compared to 2.4 million tonnes of jet fuel production in 2023.
In addition, SAF is two to three times more expensive than conventional jet fuel, representing a significant barrier to its adoption by airlines seeking to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. SAF environmental attribute certificates typically range from USD 150 to USD 500 per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent (CO₂e) emissions avoided, according to the study. The surveyed companies indicated a willingness to pay up to USD 300 per tonne, on average, suggesting a need for greater accessibility and price convergence in the certificate marketplace.
Corporate Buyers Can Help Finance SAF Adoption
Businesses can help finance the adoption of SAF by purchasing environmental attribute certificates associated with the emissions reductions produced by the fuel. These purchases can support efforts to decarbonize business-related air travel and air freight, while helping to spread the additional cost of the industry’s energy transition to a larger pool of purchasers.
One mechanism that can facilitate corporate participation in the SAF market is the book-and-claim system, which enables companies to take credit for the environmental benefits of SAF even when the fuel is not delivered at the airport where the business is located. By enabling the separation of environmental attribute ownership from physical delivery of the product, the system can help expand the reach of SAF while accommodating the logistical constraints of current aviation fuel distribution systems.
Airlines currently account for approximately 53% of corporate SAF certificate purchases, representing the largest proportion of certificate buyers in the effort to decarbonize business-related air travel and air freight. However, only 15% of the surveyed companies are currently purchasing SAF environmental attribute certificates, while the remainder are waiting for prices to decline, carbon accounting rules to clarify and purchasing processes to simplify before making purchases.
IATA Senior Vice President for Sustainability and Chief Economist Marie Owens Thomsen said that airlines cannot shoulder the cost of expanded SAF production on their own, and that corporate buyers can play a critical role in developing the SAF market, contributing to the aviation industry’s energy transition and benefiting from Scope 3 emissions reductions if the certificate purchasing process becomes more accessible and credible.
Clear Accounting Rules, Simpler Purchasing Processes Needed
The study identifies the need for three primary actions to expand corporate participation in the SAF market: clear and consistent carbon accounting rules; transparent and interoperable tracking systems; and simplified purchasing processes. These actions will enable corporations to have confidence that their certificate purchases are contributing to decarbonization and will avoid double counting of emissions reductions.
Increased price transparency, reduced minimum purchase sizes and shorter contract lengths could also help to expand participation among corporations of varying sizes. Reliable tracking systems will be needed to ensure the environmental integrity of the certificate market, while enabling wider corporate participation in the purchase of SAF in support of sustainable aviation.
Julien Manhes, Airbus Vice President for Sustainable Aviation Fuel and Carbon Dioxide Removal Development, said that corporate demand represented an important opportunity to accelerate SAF production. He suggested that clarity around carbon accounting rules could transform the interest of corporations in SAF into actual purchasing commitments, providing the necessary impetus for expanded production and cost reduction throughout the industry.
Jesko Neuenburg, Accenture’s Global Aviation and Travel Sustainability Lead, said that airlines that establish the infrastructure to recoup SAF-related costs will be best positioned to benefit from the anticipated expansion of the environmental attribute certificate market. He highlighted the need to focus on the sectors in which demand is already emerging and to develop simplified purchasing alternatives, partnerships and systems that can support continued market development.
Government Support Remains Critical to Aviation’s Transition
While corporate purchases represent an important opportunity to expand SAF production and consumption, the study suggests that private-sector demand alone will not be sufficient to meet the needs of aviation’s long-term decarbonization. Continued government support and investment will be needed to promote SAF production and reduce its cost to a level that is accessible to the overall aviation industry. Owens Thomsen said that each additional corporate purchase of SAF could help to translate climate commitments into market demand while allocating the cost of aviation decarbonization across a broader set of industry participants.
Ensuring accessibility, simplicity and credibility of participation for corporations of varying sizes will be essential in realizing the opportunity. The projected increase in corporate-supported SAF demand from 323,000 tonnes in 2024 to as much as 1.9 million tonnes by 2030 represents a significant opportunity for the sustainable aviation fuel market. For the airline industry and the overall travel sector, the ability to capitalize on the opportunity will depend on expanded corporate participation in SAF certificate purchases, greater transparency in environmental accounting and continued investment in SAF production capacity.
