Sinopec receives airworthiness certificate for China’s first large-scale production of bio-jet fuel. Credit: SINOPEC / PRNewswire.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has awarded an airworthiness certificate to Sinopec Zhenhai Refinery of China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (Sinopec) for its bio-jet fuel.

Produced with used cooking oil, Sinopec will deliver the first batch of the bio-jet fuel to the Airbus (China) Tianjin plant this month.

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The fuel will be later used for flights across China in what is said to be the first time that bio-jet fuel produced on such a large scale will meet the needs of the country’s aviation sector.

Sinopec Zhenhai Refinery CEO Mo Dingge said: “With the airworthiness certificate, Sinopec Zhenhai Refinery can now sell bio-jet fuel to the entire civil aviation market. We will continue to expand the market and supply chain to build a full industry chain of bio-jet fuel.”

With this certificate, Sinopec will be able to sell its bio-jet fuel to aviation operators across the country.

The bio-jet fuel will be produced at Sinopec’s Zhenhai Refinery in Zhejiang province with a processing capacity of 100,000tpa.

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This refinery incorporates Sinopec’s bio-jet fuel production technology to produce the fuel.

It is said to have produced nearly 600t of bio-jet fuel in June.

The company said that its refinery has already received RSB sustainable aviation fuel certification issued by Scientific Certification Systems, which allows the company to sell its bio-jet fuel in the international market.

Sinopec, in a statement, said: “Compared to traditional petroleum-based aviation kerosene, bio-jet fuel can reduce carbon emissions by up to 50% throughout the entire lifecycle.”

In April, Hong Kong’s Cathay Pacific Airways said that it would roll out a pilot corporate sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) programme in Asia.

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