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Air New Zealand will become the first airline in the world to
test second-generation biofuel when a jumbo jet takes to the sky
this year powered by the oily nuts of the jatropha plant.
In another world first, the carrier also officially announced that
it plans to switch at least 10% of its annual fuel needs to biofuel
within five years - in a bid to become the world's most sustainable
airline.
Air New Zealand used International Environment Day to announce
the plans.
"Air New Zealand is absolutely committed to being at the forefront
of testing environmentally sustainable fuels," chief executive Rob
Fyfe said.
The carrier has been in talks with US manufacturer Boeing since
last June, looking at second- and third-generation biofuels made
from a variety of non-edible sources, such as jatropha and
algae.
Jatropha
, which is considered
an invasive species in Australia, has been coined a "wonder plant"
due to the high oil content of its seeds and can grow in wasteland
with little need of water or fertiliser.
It is also 20 to 30% cheaper than a barrel of jet fuel - which has
recently been as high as $US174 a barrel.
"Jatropha satisfies all our criteria," Fyfe said.
In August, Air New Zealand and Boeing will take a two-hour test
flight from Auckland on a B747-400 with one of the plane's four
Rolls Royce engines running on jatropha.
The biofuel for flight has been sourced from India and east Africa,
and samples of the fuel have already been sent to Boeing and Rolls
Royce for testing.
"We are very confident that the test flight will go well," Air New
Zealand general manager airline operations David Morgan said.
Morgan said he did not anticipate any issues with the flight,
adding that a 747 was able to fly on three engines.
Following the test flight, the biofuel will need to be certified by
the aviation authorities and this could take up to three
years.
"Once it is certified it can be used anywhere in the world," Air
New Zealand manager group strategy Abhy Maharaj said.
Maharaj said the carrier, which was the 32nd smallest airline in
the world, was "punching above its weight" and had a history of
firsts in aviation.
The carrier has been working since 2004 to lower its fuel usage -
but finding an alternative fuel is where the real prize is.
Air New Zealand uses around nine million barrels of oil a year,
costing around $2 billion - not accounting for fuel hedging.
By using one million barrels annually of biofuel, which can be
sourced from only 125,000 hectares of jatropha plantations, the
airline can book significant savings and reduce its carbon
emissions by 400,000 tonnes annually.
Air New Zealand's ultimate goal is to use 100 per cent
biofuel.
"The goal for us in the long term is to achieve sustainable air
travel to, from, and within New Zealand," Morgan said.
The jatropha-based fuel to be used in the test flight differs from
the mix used by Virgin Atlantic, which undertook a 747
demonstration flight in February, with one engine fuelled by
first-generation biofuel derived from coconut and palm oil.
