Green flying? Government invests £63m in 'sustainable' jet fuel

The authorities is investing £63m successful caller types of pitchy substance that it hopes volition marque your summertime vacation a small much eco-friendly - though not everyone is convinced.

The currency volition beryllium shared by 17 British companies processing antithetic types of "sustainable aviation fuel" (SAF), made from materials including wood cuttings, household rubbish, sweetener beet oregon hydrogen gas.

Ministers said the funds could enactment 1,400 jobs, adhd £5bn to the system and assistance the British manufacture get up arsenic planetary request for SAF soars successful bid to conscionable stricter climate targets.

But campaigners question however sustainable these fuels truly are, saying the existent reply is to deter "frequent flying".

They pass the materials needed for sustainable fuels are hard to travel by and excessively costly to ever standard up.

Industry says it needs this currency injection precisely successful bid to little costs and grow, and planetary request is booming.

As of January, flights taking disconnected from the UK indispensable usage 2% SAF successful their fuel, nether caller authorities rules. This volition gradually emergence to 10% successful 2030 and 22% successful 2040.

But determination person been alarm bells informing not capable SAF volition beryllium disposable to conscionable those targets.

The authorities says sustainable fuels chopped emissions of greenhouse gases by 70% connected mean compared with kerosene implicit the people of its life, which includes producing it and burning it.

Aviation curate Mike Kane said: "We're not conscionable backing superb British innovation, we're creating thousands of high-skilled jobs and positioning the UK astatine the forefront of the planetary sustainable aviation market."

He said the determination would "kickstart economical growth, unafraid vigor independence, and marque Britain a cleanable vigor superpower".

But campaigners accidental astatine champion the fuels volition trim aviation emissions "by a tiny fraction of the magnitude needed", and are being utilized to warrant "irresponsible levels" of airport expansion.

James Sutton, co-director of clime foundation Possible, told Sky News they were not anti-investment, but that the SAF plans would not bring down emissions astatine the gait and standard necessary.

He said: "We request to chopped those emissions instantly if we person immoderate anticipation of hitting our clime goals, not conscionable beryllium and anticipation for the champion successful a fewer decades time.

"The exertion and concern required for SAF to displace kerosene wholly is simply not determination yet, but policies aimed astatine reducing request for flights and taxing predominant flyers, which volition truthful chopped emissions, are imaginable now.

"So that is what we request to absorption connected archetypal and foremost."

The biggest victor successful this circular of backing was Stockton-on-Tees based Alfanar Energy, which volition get £8m for converting discarded wood from sawmills and forestry into SAF.