Airbus, Indonesia partner to produce bio-based sustainable aviation fuel

Airbus’s Singapore branch is teaming up with researchers from Indonesia’s Bogor Agricultural University (IPB) in West Java to develop sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from biomass.

The project aims to produce up to 100 million tons of SAF annually using organic feedstocks such as crop residues, wood, and plant waste.

Current SAF production largely relies on used cooking oil, palm oil waste, and low-grade vegetable oils - sources with limited supply due to competition with food.

According to Meika Syahbana Rusli, director of IPB’s Surfactant and Bioenergy Research Centre (SBRC), Indonesia can supply as much as 500 million tons of biomass annually - five times Airbus’ needs.

Most of the supply will come from empty palm fruit bunches in Sumatra and Kalimantan, and large volumes of rice straw in Java. However, challenges remain in collection due to weak infrastructure, the absence of a clear legal framework, and limited large-scale processing technology.

Indonesia’s biomass output and consumption, particularly wood pellets and woodchips, are rising. While this trend presents new business opportunities, it also raises concerns over the growing risk of deforestation.

Environmental watchdog Auriga Nusantara reports nearly 10,000 hectares of forest were cleared between 2020 and 2024 for biomass production, threatening habitats of endangered species such as the Sumatran and Bornean orangutans.

State-owned Kilang Pertamina Internasional (KPI) began producing SAF from used cooking oil at its Cilacap refinery in July 2025.

The world’s largest crude palm oil producer, Indonesia has also been testing the conversion of CPO and waste cooking oil into bioavtur since 2021, with the first trial flight planned for August if the fuel meets standards.

The Ministry of Energy targets a 1% vegetable oil blend in biofuel by 2027 to reduce oil imports and cut carbon emissions. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) sees SAF as key to achieving net-zero emissions in aviation and has urged governments to support scaling up production.