Cebu Pacific sourcing ‘green’ fuel from Shell

SINGAPORE—Budget carrier Cebu Pacific, which has been refleeting with eco-planes, is ramping up its “green” initiatives through a partnership with Shell Aviation to further the use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

Shell Aviation president and CEO Jan Toschka, in a press event on Tuesday, said the parties had signed a memorandum of understanding for the supply of 25,000 metric tons of SAF annually for the budget carrier’s operations for five years beginning 2026.

Alex Reyes, chief strategy officer at Cebu Pacific, explained that SAF enables airlines to decrease carbon footprint by up to 80 percent.

“We want to make it (SAF) part of our business as usual operations,” he said.

Toschka stressed the need to take action immediately, noting that the carbon emission of the aviation sector could grow by 22 percent of total footprint by 2050 from the current 3 percent without decarbonization efforts.

This is as he noted that “Asia-Pacific will drive the biggest growth in global passenger numbers over the coming years.”

However, the Shell official noted that SAF is two to eight times more expensive than conventional jet fuel.

“We need much more demand for product to justify more investments going into the production [to make it cheaper],” he explained.

Cebu Pacific’s Reyes said this meant passing on the additional costs to the passengers. But he said they would study the costing that would be acceptable to the customers.

This year, the Gokongwei-led airline is set to receive seven neo (new engine option) aircraft from Airbus. This type of aircraft uses 20 percent less fuel.

—Tyrone Jasper C. Piad INQ