SkyNRG hopes to stimulate biofuel production with world-first scheme.

Amsterdam’s  SkyNRG has launched a world-first scheme it hopes will encourage companies to reduce their air travel carbon emissions while contributing to the development of sustainable aviation fuels. The "Board Now" program asks member companies to commit for five years to the purchase of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). SkyNRG will use the investment to cover the price difference between conventional jet fuel and sustainable aviation fuel produced by Europe’s first dedicated SAF plant in the Dutch city of Delfzijl. READ: Airlines welcome push for global government goals on aviation carbon It anticipates this will boost sales of SAF from its plant, which has been dubbed DSL-01 and already has  KLM Royal Dutch Airlines as a cornerstone customer with a commitment to buy 75,000 tonnes of SAF annually. The Board Now project launched October 8 with news that professional services provider PwC and travel company Skyscanner, the airline booking engine to which AirlineRatings is linked, would be launch members. Also involved as partners providing knowledge and marketing to Board Now are the Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials (RSB), the ClimateWorks Foundation, South Pole, Vertis Environmental Finance and the Climate Neutral Group. “PwC is doing everything in its power to reduce its own business air travel emissions substantially,’’ said PwC Netherland board member Renate de Lange. “The purchasing of sustainable aviation fuel contributes to this. “The use of SAF can deliver a CO2 reduction of at least 85 percent compared to conventional jet fuel. With our commitment to SkyNRG, we strengthen our strategy for sustainable business travel and we believe that this is a very important step towards sustainable flying”. SAFs have been tested as safe in thousands of flights and can be produced from a number of feedstocks through several processes. The aviation industry is keen to use SAF’s to reduce its carbon footprint but the problem has been encouraging large-scale production. It is introducing a global carbon offset scheme called CORSIA to bridge the gap and has called on governments to help develop the industry. SkyNRG's DSL-01 plant is a start and will produce 100,000 tons of sustainable aviation fuel annually to give the aviation industry a CO2 reduction of over 270,000 tons a year. "With the support of renowned organizations participating in Board Now, that make a choice for sustainable business travels and an investment in SAF, we are able to accelerate the energy transition in aviation,” said SkyNRG managing director Theye Veen.