Government key to growth of biofuel use
January 31, 2012, 10:28 am
Aviation experts all over the world are calling for an alternative fuel source to ensure price competition and supply security remains strong. At the start of 2012, crude oil cost more than $110 a barrel, and there is little sign of the price of aviation fuel declining in the upcoming months.
Industry leaders and researchers are utilizing technology and innovation to create bio-derived jet fuels. What is holding back the progression forward are certain government requirements, such as having to approve the alternative fuel sources and provide the funding necessary to create the fuel, develop aircrafts in compliance with the new fuel standards and help bring fuel prices down to competitive levels, Aviation Week reported.
However, the poor economy has put major stress on many governments' budgets, making it difficult to make funding aviation projects a priority. But a strong governmental role in the continued research and early commercialization of the alternative fuel sources is imperative for the biofuel to be integrated into the aviation industry smoothly and quickly. Military forces should set an example as the first adopters of the fuel source, or else governments will miss out on an opportunity to increase the use of biofuel and reduce carbon emissions, the source reported.
It is important for governments to keep up with the aviation industry as it pushes forward with new fuel sources and technology. In June 2011, the aviation industry published new specifications that allow biofuels to be derived from vegetable oils and animal fats blended up to 50 percent with conventional kerosene. These specifications came after high and volatile fuel prices started to harm the industry, and airlines were eager to buy and deploy the affordable fuel source if the quantities were sufficient and the price was right. However, because production of the biofuel has been so low, due to a lack of government support and funding, few flights have used the alternative energy, the source reported.
But the aviation industry and the U.S. government are close to signing a deal to build the first commercial scale sources of jet biofuel. The agreement could help the United States reduce its aviation-related carbon emissions and lower its dependence on oil, E&E reported.
"We know that you can make (biofuel) that doesn't malfunction when flying a plane," Andrew Soare, an analyst at Lux Research, told the source. "If one or two or three facilities are able to scale up effectively, to be within their budget of construction, to be able to produce jet fuel at cost parity with conventional jet fuel and sell to the market, prove they have a long-term solution, that will catalyze change."
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