Following a year-long investigation by Etihad Airways and a variety of partners, including Boeing, Total, Takreer and the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology, the final product examines wider progress on the development of aviation biofuels and how a supply chain could be established in the UAE, including the necessary feedstock, infrastructure and policy requirements. Abu Dhabi holds significant potential to supply domestic feedstocks that can contribute to the formation of a viable sustainable aviation biofuel industry. Three potential feedstocks are identified: cellulosics and oils from saltwater tolerant plants, municipal and agriculture waste, and local forest management. Etihad has also just conducted a fuel-optimised so-called "perfect flight" between Abu Dhabi and Washington DC as part of a new programme.
Given the region's constraints on freshwater and arable land, the current agricultural sector would not provide enough energy to support the crops; however, residues from agricultural operations could supply feedstocks, as could municipal wastes. The Integrated Seawater Energy and Agriculture System (ISEAS) is another initiative under investigation, a unique form of aquaculture involving saltwater-tolerant plants grown on non-arable desert land irrigated with seawater. A pilot facility is currently under construction within Masdar City and small-scale planting of the halophytic plant salicornia has already shown yields compare favourably with soybeans and sunflowers grown with freshwater on conventional croplands.
When announcing the roadmap, Etihad CEO James Hogan said: "The industry's licence to grow can only be granted if we find and implement ways to lower the carbon footprint of commercial aviation.
The formation of a viable UAE aviation biofuel industry in Abu Dhabi presents significant opportunity for the capital's ongoing economic diversification initiatives."
