27 May 2022

Neste and ITOCHU celebrate first Sustainable Aviation Fuel delivery to Etihad Airways in Japan

Neste Corporation, Press Release, 27 May 2022 at 12.00 p.m. (EET)

Today, Neste and ITOCHU are celebrating the first delivery of Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel™ to Etihad Airways, one of the airlines of the United Arab Emirates, in Japan. The delivery of Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) to Etihad marks the first time in Japan that SAF will be supplied to an overseas airline at an airport in Japan. The SAF will be delivered to Etihad’s aircraft at Narita International Airport.

This milestone is a result of the recently expanded partnership between Neste and ITOCHU to grow the availability of sustainable aviation fuel in Japan. ITOCHU acts as the branded distributor of Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel in Japan, making Neste’s SAF available first at the two largest Japanese international airports: Tokyo Haneda and Narita.

SAF is a key element to achieving aviation’s emission reduction goals, and both Neste and ITOCHU are committed to supporting Japan in achieving the target of 10% SAF use by 2030, set by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (“MLIT”).

“This delivery of our Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel to Etihad is a major step forward in further growing the use of our sustainable aviation fuel in the Japanese market,” says Sami Jauhiainen, Neste’s Vice President, Asia-Pacific, Renewable Aviation. “Our partnership with ITOCHU aims to support domestic and international airlines as well as other fuel suppliers at Haneda and Narita International Airports in accelerating the adoption of SAF to reduce the carbon emissions of flying. I’m excited to see this partnership is already achieving concrete results and I look forward to supporting more airlines in Japan going forward.”

“This delivery of SAF to Etihad Airways is the result of the partnership with Neste, and we are glad to be the first company to supply SAF to an overseas airline in Japan. ITOCHU will continue to cooperate with Neste and airlines departing from Japanese airports, and contribute to the decarbonization of the airline industry through the stable supply of SAF”, says Tsuyoshi Matsumoto, ITOCHU’s general manager of Petroleum Trading Department.

Tony Douglas, Group Chief Executive Officer, Etihad Aviation Group, said: “Etihad has committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 and reducing our 2019 emissions by 50 percent by 2035. For SAF to become a viable mid-term solution for aviation decarbonisation it requires collaboration between governments, corporates and the aviation industry to increase SAF supply and availability at airports, so it can be adapted more broadly. Our partnership with ITOCHU and Neste is an example of the type of industry collaboration that is required to bring widespread SAF adoption to the industry. We are extremely proud to be the first international airline to procure and use Japanese supplied SAF on flights departing Japan.”

Neste is committed to working together with the global aviation industry to achieve its emission reduction targets. Neste is currently expanding its SAF production capacity to 1.5 million tons per annum by the end of 2023. That includes up to 1 million tons of SAF production capacity in Neste’s Singapore refinery via the ongoing Neste Singapore Expansion Project, which will start operations by the end of the first quarter of 2023.

Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel is a solution for reducing the direct greenhouse gas emissions of flying immediately. It can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 80%*, in its neat form and over the life cycle, compared to fossil jet fuel. Neste-produced SAF is made from sustainably sourced, 100% renewable waste and residue raw materials. As a drop-in fuel it can be used with existing aircraft engines and airport fuel infrastructure, requiring no extra investment to them.

*) Calculated with established life cycle assessment (LCA) methodologies, such as CORSIA methodology.

Neste Corporation

Susanna Sieppi
Vice President, Communications

Further information:

Neste: Please contact Neste's media service, tel. +358 800 94025 / media@neste.com (weekdays from 8.30 a.m. to 4.00 p.m. EET).

ITOCHU: Please contact via the website: https://www.itochu.co.jp/en/inquiry/product/input
 

Neste in brief

Neste (NESTE, Nasdaq Helsinki) creates solutions for combating climate change and accelerating a shift to a circular economy. We refine waste, residues and innovative raw materials into renewable fuels and sustainable feedstock for plastics and other materials. We are the world’s leading producer of sustainable aviation fuel and renewable diesel and developing chemical recycling to combat the plastic waste challenge. We aim at helping customers to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions with our renewable and circular solutions by at least 20 million tons annually by 2030. Our ambition is to make the Porvoo oil refinery in Finland the most sustainable refinery in Europe by 2030. We are introducing renewable and recycled raw materials such as liquefied waste plastic as refinery raw materials. We have committed to reaching carbon-neutral production by 2035, and we will reduce the carbon emission intensity of sold products by 50% by 2040. We also have set high standards for biodiversity, human rights and supply chain. We have consistently been included in the Dow Jones Sustainability Indices and the Global 100 list of the world’s most sustainable companies. In 2021, Neste's revenue stood at EUR 15.1 billion. Read more: neste.com

ITOCHU Corporation in brief

The history of ITOCHU Corporation dates back to 1858 when the Company's founder Chubei Itoh commenced linen trading operations. Since then, ITOCHU Corporation has evolved and grown over 160 years. With approximately 100 bases in 62 countries, ITOCHU Corporation, one of the leading sogo shosha, is engaging in domestic trading, import/export, and overseas trading of various products such as textile, machinery, metals, minerals, energy, chemicals, food, general products, realty, information and communications technology, and finance, as well as business investment in Japan and overseas.