ALTA and IICA join forces to promote Sustainable Aviation Fuels in Latin America and the Caribbean

With the objective of strengthening the implementation of production, marketing and use of Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAF), the Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA) and the Inter-American Institute Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) sign a cooperation agreement within the framework of ALTA Aviation Law Americas and the Joint Meeting of the Fuel Committee, which will take place from September 14th to 16th in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

The agreement lays the groundwork for both organizations to move forward jointly for the implementation of the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) Vision 2050, which calls upon States, industry and other stakeholders for a significant proportion of the sustainable use of aviation fuel (SAF) by 2050.

Through this agreement, a strategic alliance is consolidated that will allow both entities to cooperate technically for the development of SAF production and distribution in the region, through incentives, projects and resources.

According to José Ricardo Botelho, executive director and CEO of ALTA, “the opportunities to place our region as SAF producer and trader are very relevant. We have all the raw material for this, the demand is here and we have the possibility to encourage important investments and the generation of millions of jobs”.

IICA is the inter-American system’s specialized agency for agriculture with 80 years of experience, being completed this year, in encouraging, promoting and supporting its 34 member states, represented by their respective ministers of agriculture, in their efforts to achieve agricultural and rural development through excellent international technical cooperation.

“Biofuels have become an important tool for the decarbonization of transport and it is the agricultural sector that provides the fundamental raw materials to industrialize and produce these greener biofuels. According to the “Atlas of Liquid Biofuels 2020-2021”, recently published by IICA, in 2020 the most used raw materials in the production of biodiesel were vegetable oils, such as palm, soy or rapeseed”, said Gabriel Delgado, coordinator for the Southern Region and IICA representative in Brazil.

“Several scenarios project an increase in global consumption of biodiesel. In addition to being used in land transport, biofuels are now being used in other sectors, such as aviation, so this alliance can bring many benefits to the sector and the region,” he concluded.

In October 2021, ALTA committed to generate instances to promote research, innovation and technological progress programs for the development of alternative fuels in civil aviation under a sustainable approach; to promote initiatives for the use of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF); and to work in a coordinated manner to ensure that the use of SAF does not become an economic tax burden for air transport.

“The agreement we signed today with IICA will allow us to collaborate technically in the preparation of specific projects for our region that will undoubtedly be extremely positive in accelerating the implementation of SAF in the region. The demand exists, now we need to efficiently direct availability”, adds Botelho.