Sustainable biofuels landed at the New York Climate Conference yesterday courtesy of Finnair, which powered its flight from Helsinki using a new fuel made from recycled cooking oil.

 

The nine hour Airbus 330 flight was the carrier's first transatlantic service to use the fuel, a mix of conventional fuel and used cooking oil provided by SkyNRG Nordic - a joint venture between SkyNRG and Statoil Aviation.

 

Finnair is the latest in a long line of airlines experimenting with biofuels, including BA, Virgin, KLM, and Lufthansa.

 

Initial trials have suggested the technology is safe and can deliver emissions reductions, but sustainable jet fuel is still around twice the price of standard kerosene and there remains questions about the ability of the nascent jet biofuel sector to scale up to meet demand.

 

Finnair has previously flown from Helsinki to Amsterdam on a similar mix and says switching to a more sustainable fuel source can reduce net CO2 emissions by between 50 and 80 per cent.

 

The company said it now aims to establish a biofuel hub at Helsinki Airport to accelerate the local supply and production of sustainable and affordable jet fuel, while reducing its reliance on fossil fuels.

 

"As air traffic contributes two per cent of all greenhouse gas emissions, it is very important to have this trial with the use of biofuels," said Pekka Haavisto, Finland's Minister for International Development. "If the price of oil rises and biofuels become cheaper, there will hopefully be a day when we'll be able to replace at least some of the fossil fuels with fuels made of renewable and waste material. I'm happy that Finnair is showing leadership in this development."