OMV Supplies Austrian Airlines with SAF
Innovation and future-oriented technologies are essential to meet climate and greenhouse-gas emissions targets. The aviation industry plays an important role in this as the industry accounts for 2.8% of total CO2 emissions worldwide. The aviation industry needs to decarbonize to meet its target of carbon neutrality by 2050. One of the most important levers is the use of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF). OMV, together with its longstanding cooperation partner Austrian Airlines, is focusing on sustainable aviation fuel produced at OMV’s Schwechat refinery, one of the largest and most complex inland refineries in Europe. Following the signing of the supply contract at the end of 2021, the first SAF was delivered in March 2022 to the Vienna International Airport for fueling Austrian Airlines’ aircraft.
“OMV is implementing numerous measures to achieve its ambitious strategic sustainability goals, and sustainable aviation fuel plays a key role in our transformation. We are planning to increase sales of SAF from our own production from approx. 2,000 this year to more than 700,000 metric tons per year by 2030. With this, we address the reduction of greenhouse gases. The first milestone is already achieved with the delivery of SAF to our longstanding partner, Austrian Airlines. Through this cooperation, we demonstrate the strength of two national champions, OMV and Austrian Airlines, which further solidifies Austria as an innovation hub,” said Elena Skvortsova, Executive Officer for Marketing & Trading at OMV.
“Aviation will continue to connect people and societies around the world. Sustainable aviation fuels are a key lever for making transport and connectivity carbon neutral. As the first Austrian airline, we are already fuelling our aircraft with SAF, bringing us a step closer to meet our climate goals,” added Michael Trestl, Chief Commercial Officer at Austrian Airlines.
“Sustainable aviation fuels are a core technology for reducing CO2 emissions in air travel and they demonstrate the enormous innovation potential of the industry. The production of SAF at our Schwechat Refinery can be seen as highly efficient not only due to the use of regionally sourced sustainable raw materials but also due to the use of existing infrastructure for production, storage and fuelling at Vienna International Airport,” Martijn van Koten, OMV Executive Board Member for Refining, noted.
“The supply chain for our SAF could not be any more ‘Austrian’. The cooperation with OMV shows how regionally such innovations can be built and prove Austrian visionary power!” mentioned Austrian Airlines Chief Operational Officer Francesco Sciortino.
Sustainable aviation fuel is produced by OMV by co-processing sustainable and regional raw materials, specifically used cooking oil. Compared to conventional jet fuel, sustainable aviation fuel delivers a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions of more than 80% over the entire life cycle.
