Outlook 2025: eSAF – overcoming financial, technical and market challenges

Sustainable aviation fuel from electrolysis has great potential for reducing aviation sector emissions, but cost, energy requirements and the need for substantial investment stand in the way of take-off

Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) has emerged as a crucial option for reducing emissions in a sector that is challenging to electrify. Electrolysis-derived SAF, or eSAF, holds particular promise as it uses power-to-liquid (PtL) technology to convert renewable electricity, water and captured CO₂ into synthetic jet fuel. This alternative differs from bio-based SAF, which depends on agricultural feedstocks and has inherent scalability limits. eSAF, by contrast, can theoretically be produced at larger volumes due to its reliance on renewable electricity and CO₂. However, eSAF production faces significant barriers, such as high costs, large energy requirements and the need for substantial investmen