Southeast Asia has the potential to supply 12 per cent of the world’s demand for sustainable aviation fuel by 2050, according to a report developed by the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials and supported by aircraft maker Boeing.

Assuming that sustainable aviation fuel producers in Southeast Asia do not export their fuel, it would be sufficient to meet the jet fuel demands of the region, said Robert Boyd, regional sustainability lead for Asia-Pacific at Boeing.

“If today, we could click our fingers and turn the potential into sustainable aviation fuel, it’ll meet every drop of jet fuel being used in Southeast Asia today,” said Boyd, who was speaking at a media briefing on the findings of the report.

“Think about this through the lens of a government: Rather than exporting the majority of your jet fuel today, if the resources exist in-country to create an industry that could supply all of your jet fuel needs, that’s got to be, at minimum, a good discussion with policymakers,” he added.

The report released on Tuesday (3 September) noted that the region has enough bio-based feedstock resources to produce 45.7 million tonnes of sustainable aviation fuel by 2050 — 12 per cent of the projected 380 million tonnes needed for the aviation sector to achieve its net-zero-by-2050 target.
 

Southeast Asia’s potential

The report — which looked at the feedstock potential of all 10 member states of ASEAN as well as Timor-Leste (which received in-principle approval to join the regional bloc) — stated that the region possesses significant potential to produce sustainable aviation fuel due to its abundant and diverse bio-based feedstock resources.

It looked at 11 feedstocks, including rice husks and straw, palm oil residues, sugars, municipal waste, and some energy crops.

The total availability of sustainable aviation fuel feedstock from all 11 countries for 2025 is estimated at around 375.3 million tonnes per year. This could potentially lead to the production of 40.9 million tonnes of sustainable aviation fuel.

Based on literature estimations of feedstock growth that consider various factors influencing agricultural production, including demographic trends and consumption patterns, it is assumed that feedstock production in Southeast Asia would experience a 1.1 per cent annual increase from 2025 to 2030, and a 0.3 per cent rise from 2030 to 2050.

Indonesia leads the region in terms of sustainable aviation fuel feedstock availability, followed by Thailand, Vietnam, and the Philippines. These four markets account for 90 per cent of the region’s potential sustainable aviation fuel supply capacity.

Rice husks and straws are the most abundant feedstock, making up 36.9 per cent of all feedstock availability. The next is palm oil residues at 11.9 per cent. Crude palm oil is estimated to contribute only 3.1 per cent.

While Indonesia and Malaysia are the world’s leading producers of palm oil products, most of them are either exported or used for the food and feed industry, leaving a small proportion for biofuels, read the report.

Palm oil remains a contentious feedstock material in discussions around sustainable aviation fuel as the European Union has banned the use of palm oil to manufacture it, on the basis that palm oil production has been associated with deforestation.

When asked whether the inclusion of palm oil and its residue as feedstock materials would affect Southeast Asia’s sustainable aviation fuel exports to the EU, Boyd said that this complies with standards set by the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), a global offsetting scheme for the aviation sector.

“All of those feedstocks are permitted under CORSIA, but they must satisfy (CORSIA’s sustainable aviation fuel sustainability criteria). And in my view, it’s the best, most agreed because it’s international, and it’s the one we refer to as the standard. So I think if you’re in this region, it’s a great opportunity to look at what you’re doing today, and how would you meet the CORSIA standard, and then you have an international market for your sustainable aviation fuel,” he added.

Despite Southeast Asia’s potential, the report noted that current and projected sustainable aviation fuel infrastructure in the region may not be sufficient to meet future demand.

Several factors could influence the actual availability of feedstock, such as financing requirements, infrastructure investments, effective collection systems, and competing industrial interests.

To push the production of sustainable aviation fuel in the region, the report highlighted the need for a supportive regulatory environment, enhanced regional collaboration, government support for sustainable aviation fuel initiatives by the private sector, as well as economic incentives in financing mechanisms.

Source: The Business Times ©️ SPH Media Limited. Permission required for reproduction.