Posted July 1, 2015
United Airlines will soon use biofuel made from animal oil and by-products as early as this summer, according to a Daily Mail article available here. The New York Times also published an article available hereand KMBZ here.
This is the biggest deal to date with a company producing biofuel derived from municipal solid waste, or household garbage, to run alongside an existing contract with another biofuel manufacturer.
Next week United plans to announce a $30 million investment into Fulcrum BioEnergy – which uses materials such as paper, plastics, textiles, wood and more that is currently disposed of in landfill to make biofuel.
As part of the investment, United will also have the opportunity to purchase up to 90 million gallons of sustainable fuel from Fulcrum for a minimum of 10 years. Fulcrum’s first alternative fuels plant is expected to begin commercial operation in 2017, according to KMBZ.
United’s Executive Vice President and General Counsel Brett Hart said in a statementthat “alternative fuels is an emerging industry that is vital to the future of aviation.” The investment, he says, “is just one of our intiiatives to help make these fuels saleable and scalable.”
“Investing in alternative fuels is not only good for the environment,” Hart continued, “it’s a smart move for our company as biofuels have the potential to hedge against future oil price volatility and carbon regulations.”
United’s deal is the airline’s second major push toward alternative fuels. In 2013, the airline agreed to buy 15 million gallons of biofuels over three years from a California-based producer called AltAir Fuels, which makes biofuels out of nonedible natural oils and agricultural waste, according to The New York Times.
For the first two weeks, four to five flights a day will carry a fuel mixture that is 30 percent biofuel and 70 percent traditional jet fuel then, the fuel will be blended into the overall supply. The flight will have very little differences for passengers, but for the airlines and the biofuels industry, the flight will represent a long-awaited milestone: the first time a domestic airline operates regular passenger flights using an alternative jet fuel.
For more information on the Renewable Energy, please visit the National Agricultural Law Center’s website here.
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