Singapore Airlines (SIA) has signed an agreement to purchase up to 4,800 tonnes of next-generation sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from Aether Beacon Pte Ltd over three years, with deliveries starting in 2028.
SIA is the first airline to purchase SAF produced at Project Beacon, Aether Fuels’ commercial production facility being developed at Aster’s refining complex on Pulau Bukom in Singapore. The agreement marks SIA’s first purchase of SAF produced using technology that converts waste carbon feedstocks into aviation fuel.
New feedstock pathway
Project Beacon will use feedstocks such as biomethane and industrial waste gases to produce SAF using Aether’s Aurora technology. This offers an alternative to the hydro-processed esters and fatty acids pathway, which relies on more constrained lipid-based feedstocks. Aether uses proprietary technology built around the Fischer-Tropsch process to convert waste-derived gases into liquid aviation fuel. The SAF will be certified under the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation.
Aether said it intends to start up its first large-scale commercial plant by 2031, with production capacity at least ten times larger than Beacon, as part of its planned expansion of next-generation SAF capacity.
Executives comment on agreement
Lee Wen Fen, chief sustainability officer at Singapore Airlines, set out how the agreement fits the airline’s broader climate targets.
“Supporting the development and adoption of SAF, and securing future supplies, are integral to SIA’s ambition of achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2050. As the first airline to purchase SAF from Project Beacon, SIA is demonstrating demand for new lower-carbon fuel production pathways in Singapore. We will continue to work with partners globally to scale SAF production, strengthen the aviation industry’s sustainability ecosystem, and support the transition to more sustainable air travel,” Lee said.
Conor Madigan, co-founder and chief executive officer of Aether Fuels, described how the project has progressed since the companies first signed a memorandum of understanding.
“When we signed our MOU with Singapore Airlines last year, Project Beacon had not yet been announced. Since then, we have selected Singapore as the home of our first commercial facility and built critical partnerships across the local value chain. Singapore is building a strong ecosystem for aviation decarbonisation through refining and aviation infrastructure, investment support, sustainability policies, and utilising their position as a global aviation hub. This binding agreement is an important next step and a strong signal of committed demand from a leading global airline – exactly the type of collaboration needed to create the commercial conditions to bring new SAF pathways to scale,” Madigan said.
