TOKYO (Reuters) – Idemitsu Kosan will begin a trial plantation of the non-edible oilseed tree crop Pongamia in Australia from mid-January to assess its potential as a feedstock for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), Japan’s No.2 crude oil refiner said on Thursday.
The plantation will be conducted in collaboration with Terviva, a U.S. company with over a decade of research and cultivation expertise in Pongamia, Idemitsu said in a statement.
Pongamia, a leguminous plant distributed in Southeast Asia and Oceania, is a highly efficient non-edible oilseed crop that does not compete with food production, according to Idemitsu.
Idemitsu, aiming to establish a supply system for 500,000 kilolitres of SAF annually by 2030, said it has also invested in Terviva, it said, but did not disclose the investment details.
Through the trial plantation, Idemitsu will evaluate long-term cultivation methods for Pongamia and how to optimize the supply chain from cultivation to SAF production.
Idemitsu will also explore additional uses for Pongamia, including creating carbon credits through afforestation, producing biomass power pellets from Pongamia shells, and using pressed oilseed cake as livestock feed.
Oil extracted from its seeds is expected to serve as a feedstock for sustainable aviation fuel production, the company said.
SAF is considered crucial for the aviation sector to reach its goal of net zero carbon emissions by 2050, but its adoption remains in a nascent phase.
SAF makes up only around 0.3% of global jet fuel usage and is projected to reach just 0.7% by 2025, according to data from airline trade body IATA. Experts emphasize that the production rate of the green fuel needs to grow quickly for the sector to achieve its emissions targets.
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Tomasz Janowski)
