General Aviation News

Directional Aviation Invests in Green Aviation Fuels

Directional Aviation Invests in Green Aviation Fuels

Private aviation investment firm Directional Aviation has invested in Alder Fuels, a clean energy developer, to back the commercial scale-up of second-generation sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

The two companies also agreed on a blockchain-powered transparency tool to assist and document the production life cycle and industry adoption of low-carbon SAF.

“Our investment in Alder Fuels and partnership on advancing the use of digital technology to document SAF use is an example of private aviation leading the way on sustainability commitments and identifying solutions to reduce carbon emissions that aid the entire aviation industry,” said Kenneth C. Ricci, Principal, Directional Aviation.

Unlike first-generation SAF, which was made from non-scalable supplies of fats, oils and grease, the Alder Greencrude (AGC) uses sustainable biomass, such as regenerative grasses, forest residues and agricultural waste products, to create a low-carbon to carbon-negative greencrude that can be converted into SAF.

Under the partnership, Flexjet will be the first business aviation partner for AGC, which will help it achieve its goal of having 12% of its annual fuel consumption come from SAF by 2030.

In 2021, the White House launched its “SAF Grand Challenge,” with the goal of having 3 billion gallons of SAF produced and reducing aviation emissions by 20% in the U.S. by 2030.

The recent passage of the Inflation Reduction Act into law amplifies the U.S. commitment to SAF by providing tax credits for every gallon produced that demonstrates a 50% or greater lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions reduction relative to petroleum jet fuel.

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