Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) wants to introduce more passenger and cargo flights using sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) in all of its airline subsidiaries by 2023.
MAG group chief sustainability officer, Philip See said the plan was in line with the aviation group’s pledge to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 as well as to make SAF the cleaner and more viable energy option for the aviation group’s regular flights by 2025.
“We’re going to strategically launch the flights over the next six months to one year. We can’t disclose the flights yet because we’re still in discussions. But the answer is yes.
“There is a plan to roll out selective SAF flights both on the passenger side as well as on the cargo side, not only on Malaysia Airlines (MAS) but also the subsidiary groups of FireFly, MASwings, Amal and MAB Cargo as well,” he said at the launch of MAS’ first SAF-powered passenger flight at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) recently.
The Boeing B737-800 MH603 flight from Kuala Lumpur to Singapore is fuelled by a blend of conventional jet fuel and 38 percent of SAF.
The SAF is produced from 100 percent renewable waste and residue raw materials, such as animal fat waste.
The flight follows the historic SAF-fuelled commercial cargo flight MH7979 from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur in December 2021.
See said that SAF came at a higher cost of investment given that it was a new technology. However, MAG would eventually be able to reduce the cost as more SAF-fuelled flights are sold in the future.
“SAF is more expansive than conventional fuel. But we’re seeing a couple of things here. One is that passengers are beginning to be interested and want to take SAF flights and are willing to pay more for it.”
“Secondly, it’s part of building the interest and demand for it, we create the economies of scale to then help us structurally reduce the cost in the future. So, for us it’s partly going to be more expensive in the short-term but in the long-term we know it’s the right path towards net-zero,” he added.
Meanwhile, Petronas Dagangan Bhd managing director and chief executive officer, Azrul Osman Rani said the company was exploring brownfield and greenfield options for a bio-refinery processing plant to cater to the growing demand of SAF.
“We’re definitely looking at a couple of options. We’re reviewing both brownfield and greenfield options within the Group,” he said, adding that the study should be either be ready by 2027.
He also said that the company would continue to support MAG in the aviation group’s quest to reach net-zero carbon emissions in the near future.
MAG and Petronas Dagangan entered into a partnership in 2021 to jointly explore potential collaborative opportunities that advance sustainability, including the supply and adoption of SAF at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport.
The SAF that was used in the MH603 flight is produced by Neste, the world’s largest SAF producer.
