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EU, UAE Push Sustainable Aviation Fuels at Dubai Airshow
EU and UAE pushed faster deployment of sustainable aviation fuels at the Dubai Airshow 2025.
Leaders and regulators met during Dubai Airshow 2025 to focus on scaling sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) and aligning policy frameworks across regions. The session highlighted the European Union’s RefuelEU Aviation Regulation, which requires a 2% SAF blend by 2025 rising to 70% by 2050, and reaffirmed the United Arab Emirates’ Net Zero by 2050 initiative.
Officials emphasised that growing SAF output is central to decarbonising air transport and meeting International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) targets. ICAO calls for a 5% reduction in CO₂ emissions from international aviation by 2030, a benchmark speakers said will need stronger supply chains and investment to reach.
Participants — including policy-makers, fuel producers and airport operators — underlined that technical standards, feedstock sourcing and financing remain obstacles. Cross-regional collaboration was presented as the quickest route to scale SAF, with the EU and UAE agreeing to explore joint projects, certification alignment and off-take mechanisms.
Scaling sustainable aviation fuels: targets and hurdles
Panelists stressed practical steps to boost SAF availability for airlines: increase refinery conversions, certify more feedstocks, and create predictable demand signals so producers can finance capacity. The discussion avoided operational specifics for carriers but focused on systemic levers that governments and industry can pull.
- Regulatory targets: RefuelEU’s ramp from 2% (2025) towards 70% (2050) puts sustainable aviation fuels at the centre of policy planning.
- Market barriers: feedstock supply, production cost and certification timelines.
- Solutions: investment in production, international certification alignment and airline off-take agreements.
Attendees left the meeting with a clear message: meeting ICAO’s 2030 ambitions and long-term net-zero goals will require coordinated policy, private capital and faster SAF scaling across hubs like the UAE and EU member states. The Dubai Airshow gathering framed that cooperation as a practical necessity rather than an optional ambition.
