Indonesia, Friday (27/10) carried out its first commercial flight using jet fuel mixed with palm oil or bioavtur.
This flight is part of Indonesia's efforts, as the world's largest palm oil producer, to encourage wider use of biofuels to reduce fuel imports.
Operated by national airline Garuda Indonesia, the Boeing 737-800NG aircraft carried more than 100 passengers from Jakarta to Solo, a distance of about 550 kilometers, said Garuda Indonesia CEO Irfaniaputra.
"We will have further discussions with Pertamina, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM), and other parties to ensure this fuel is commercially viable," said Irfan at the ceremony, adding that the plane was planned to return to Jakarta on Friday evening.
Garuda carried out several tests including a flight test of the new fuel earlier this month and a ground test of the engine in August.
This palm oil mixed jet fuel is produced by Pertamina at the Cilacap refinery, using HEFA (hydroprocessed esters and fatty acids) technology and is made from palm kernel oil that has been purified and deodorized.
Pertamina says palm oil-based fuels emit fewer greenhouse gases that cause atmospheric warming compared to fossil fuels, and palm oil producing countries have called for the vegetable oil to be included in raw materials for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production. .
"In 2021, Pertamina succeeded in producing SAF type 2.0 at the Cilacap unit using co-processing technology and made from processed palm kernel oil that has been purified and deodorized with a production capacity of 1,350 kiloliters per day," said Alfian Nasution, Director of Pertamina.
Meanwhile, Harris Yahya, Director of Geothermal at the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, said that the use of biofuel will reduce the greenhouse effect.
The aviation industry, which is the largest emitter of greenhouse gases, is looking for ways to reduce its carbon footprint by using alternative fuels.
Experts say the industry will need 450 billion liters of SAF per year by 2050, if the fuel is to be considered to contribute around 65 percent to mitigation efforts to reach the net-zero target.
However, several countries have expressed concerns about the potential for deforestation in the production of palm oil from plantations. The European Union has imposed import restrictions on these commodities.
In 2021, Indonesia will conduct test flights with the same fuel on aircraft made by Dirgantara Indonesia. The plane flew from the city of Bandung, West Java, to the capital Jakarta.
Indonesia has ordered three percent biofuel blending in jet fuel by 2020, but implementation has been delayed.
