Through a strategic partnership with Bleriot SAF, a local Kenyan company, Kenya Airways is pioneering the production and use of Kenya-made Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). This initiative marks a significant step towards a greener future for aviation, showcasing the airline’s commitment to environmental leadership and positioning Kenya as a leader in decarbonising air travel.
Local Production, Global Standards
The collaboration with Bleriot SAF has been instrumental in establishing local SAF production capabilities. Kenya Airways provided essential knowledge in SAF regulatory compliance, adhering to international standards set by ICAO, IATA, and KCAA. The airline also shared critical market insights, including feasibility studies and scaling capabilities for both export and offtake, along with technological expertise. This partnership has enabled Bleriot SAF to achieve an annual production capacity of 400 tonnes of SAF.
Kenya Airways is already complying with EU and UK SAF mandates by uplifting fuel with a minimum 2% SAF blend at European and UK departure airports such as Paris Charles de Gaulle (CDG), Amsterdam Schiphol (AMS), London Heathrow (LHR), and London Gatwick (LGW). For The Aviation Challenge 2025, the airline is taking this a step further by using locally blended 2% SAF on multiple long-haul routes, advancing its SAF adoption.
Addressing Infrastructure and Technology Gaps
Kenya Airways acknowledges the current challenges in local SAF infrastructure. Kenya currently lacks dedicated SAF Jet A-1 blending facilities capable of operating at commercial scale. This necessitates uplifting SAF abroad or transporting neat SAF long distances for blending, incurring additional costs. The absence of domestic blending capability also leads to longer lead times and increased exposure to price fluctuations in foreign markets.
There is also no established pipeline or bulk transport system for moving neat or blended SAF between blending facilities and airports, resulting in reliance on road tankers. These infrastructure gaps increase the risk of delays or contamination and require additional quality control checks.
SAF production demands advanced refining and certification technology, such as hydro-processed esters and fatty acids (HEFA) or Fischer-Tropsch synthesis, which involve high capital investment and complex regulatory approvals. Importing or leasing this technology is financially burdensome for a nascent SAF market like Kenya’s.
Unlocking Environmental Benefits
Sustainable Aviation Fuel offers a lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions reduction of up to 80% compared to conventional jet fuel. This figure accounts for the entire process, from feedstock cultivation to refining, blending, transportation, and combustion.
A key aspect of the airline’s approach is carbon sequestration through feedstock cultivation. SAF feedstocks, including energy crops, waste oils, and agricultural residues, are grown on arid or non-agricultural land, avoiding competition with food production. As these plants grow, they absorb CO₂ from the atmosphere, creating a natural carbon sink. In Kenya, this could increase national tree cover by approximately 0.04% annually, contributing to reforestation and ecosystem restoration goals.
By replacing conventional jet fuel with SAF blends, thousands of tonnes of CO₂e emissions can be avoided each year, representing a measurable contribution toward IATA’s Net Zero by 2050 target and Kenya’s Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) under the Paris Agreement. Additional co-benefits include diverting waste oils and residues from landfills, preventing methane emissions, and reducing emissions tied to long-distance transportation of imported fuels.
Kenya Airways’ investment in local SAF production positions both the airline and Kenya as regional leaders in aviation decarbonisation, offering a pathway for other African carriers and corporate travellers to reduce their climate impact.
Building a Sustainable Future: Partnerships and Scaling Plans
Kenya Airways has been instrumental in establishing the National SAF Committee in Kenya, working to embed SAF provisions into the country’s Renewable Energy Policy. This committee unites regulators, energy experts, airlines, and environmental agencies to define standards, streamline approvals, and create incentives for local SAF production.
The airline is also a key participant in a regional SAF technical working group, advocating for SAF adoption across Africa. This group facilitates knowledge sharing, harmonises certification and safety standards, and lobbies for regional financing mechanisms to support SAF production.
In partnership with Kenya Forestry, Kenya Airways is securing non-agricultural and arid land for the cultivation of energy crops. This ensures a steady feedstock supply for SAF production while restoring degraded ecosystems and increasing Kenya’s tree cover.
The airline’s long-term strategy is to position Kenya as a regional SAF hub, providing blended SAF not only for its own operations but also for other African carriers. Beyond 2025, it plans to progressively increase SAF blend percentages, aiming for higher mandates aligned with EU and UK trajectories, such as 6–10% by 2030. This vision includes investments in blending facilities, pipeline networks, and training programmes to build local technical expertise, ensuring Africa develops autonomous and competitive SAF production capacity.
Economic Impact and Local Empowerment
Local SAF production is projected to create direct jobs in plant construction, operations, quality control, and blending, as well as indirect jobs in feedstock cultivation, harvesting, logistics, and maintenance. This job creation is particularly impactful in rural and arid regions.
SAF development aligns with Kenya Airways’ broader ESG objectives by improving livelihoods, reducing income inequalities, and supporting inclusive economic growth. By engaging local farmers, forestry associations, and SMEs, the SAF value chain offers diverse income streams. Cultivating energy crops on non-arable or degraded land regenerates ecosystems and enhances biodiversity, translating into long-term economic resilience for local communities.
Local production also retains value within the Kenyan economy, stimulating green investment and reducing foreign exchange exposure. Kenya’s SAF initiative, backed by partnerships such as Bleriot SAF and funding commitments, signals to international investors that the country is serious about sustainable aviation. This can attract climate finance, public-private partnerships, and regional collaborations, accelerating both SAF scaling and broader green-economy development.
Kenya Airways remains committed to leading the charge in sustainable aviation, demonstrating that homegrown innovation can pave the way for a greener, more prosperous future for Kenya and the African continent.
Why It Matters
- Regional Leadership: Kenya Airways’ SAF initiative positions Kenya as a continental leader in aviation decarbonisation and renewable energy innovation, setting a benchmark for other African carriers.
- Environmental Impact: Locally produced Sustainable Aviation Fuel offers up to 80% lifecycle greenhouse gas emission reduction compared to conventional jet fuel, supporting IATA’s Net Zero by 2050 goals.
- Economic Empowerment: The development of a domestic SAF value chain creates skilled and unskilled jobs in refining, logistics, and feedstock cultivation, particularly benefitting rural and arid regions.
- Infrastructure and Policy Alignment: The partnership strengthens Kenya’s renewable energy policy framework and SAF infrastructure development, advancing national climate commitments under the Paris Agreement.
