An Etihad Airways Boeing 787 has become the first airliner to make a commercial flight using biofuel after the aircraft completed a journey between Abu Dhabi and Amsterdam.
The Sustainable Bioenergy Research Consortium (SBRC), a non-profit entity, developed the fuel using the UAE’s Seawater Energy and Agriculture System (SEAS).
The fuel was derived from oil in Salicornia plants, which were grown on a two-hectare SEAS farm in Masdar City.
SEAS is a desert ecosystem designed to produce fuel and food in saltwater. Fish and shrimp raised at the facility provide nutrients for the plants as well as contribute to the UAE’s food production.
The flight was powered by GE’s GEnx-1B engines and, according to UAE state news agency WAM, marked a major milestone in the development of a clean, alternative aviation fuel to reduce carbon emissions.
Mariam Hareb Almheiri, UAE minister of state for food security, said: “What is particularly exciting about the SEAS is that it is an initiative that supports multiple platforms: aviation, oil and gas and agriculture.”
Almheiri added that the UAE had invested more than AED100m to develop hatcheries and fish farms.
The SBRC, part of Masdar Institute at Khalifa University, said using sustainable feedstock to produce the fuel significantly reduces life-cycle carbon dioxide emissions compared to fossil fuel.
ADNOC Refining had helped the seed oil to meet stringent jet fuel standards. Salicornia is a genus of succulent, salt tolerant flowering plants which grow in salt marshes and beaches, and inland salty habitats.
Meanwhile ADNOC Logistics & Services, ADNOC’s marine and logistics subsidiary, said it had reduced fuel consumption and carbon emissions by 23% across a fleet of 27 vessels.
The project used digitisation to improve energy performance, aid route planning, improve fuel monitoring and optimise engine speed. More efficient propellers and high-performance hull coating improved vessel thrust.
The company also chartered an additional LNG vessel, to ensure that the fleet could adopt slow steaming without affecting delivery schedules.
The company said accumulated fuel savings from the Al Daffah Energy Efficiency Project amount to 325,000 metric tons of heavy fuel oil – which is equivalent to the load of a very large crude carrier ship.
And Abu Dhabi Department of Energy has opened what it believes to be the world's largest virtual battery plant, with a capacity of 108 megawatts distributed over 10 sites across the emirate.
The opening coincided with the Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week 2019, and aims to serve Abu Dhabi by ensuring load balancing during the day.
“The landmark deployment ensures sustainable energy supply across several key sites in Abu Dhabi as part of an integrated plan to secure sufficient electrical power production to meet growing demand for energy in the emirate,” said Awaidha Murshed Al Marar, chairman of the Department of Energy.
☛ Want to stay up to date with the news? Sign up to our daily bulletin.