NEW DELHI: Oil Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said on Friday that India intends to mandate the use of 1 percent sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) for domestic aircraft by 2025 in an effort to reduce emissions from the industry.

India does not yet set up  sustainable aviation fuel regulations, in contrast to the US and the Europeon Union. The sustainable aviation fuel mandate of the European Commission is anticipated to begin in 2025 with a minimum volume of 2%.

For jet fuel blended with 1% sustainable aviation fuel ,  Puri said  that 140 million gallons of biofuels are required. If there are greater volumes of biofuels available, the mandate for sustainable aviation fuel might increase to 4-5%, he suggested.

An Indian panel recommended that 1% sustainable aviation fuel be implemented nationwide by 2025.

At a ceremony to welcome the nation's first local flight powered by biojet,  Puri indicated that the final mandate will need cabinet approval.

The biofuel was given by the private company Praj Industries and combined with jet fuel by Indian Oil Corp, the top refiner in the nation.

The IOC plans to build a factory by 2026 that will manufacture 87,000 tonnes of sustainable aviation fuel annually and cost more than 15 billion rupees, said S.S.V. Ramakumar, the director of research and development at IOC. 

What is sustainable aviation Mandate: A sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) mandate refers to a policy or regulation that requires or encourages the use of sustainable aviation fuels in the aviation industry. Sustainable aviation fuels, also known as biojet fuels or renewable jet fuels, are derived from renewable feedstocks such as plants, algae, or waste materials, as opposed to traditional fossil fuels.

Himachal to roll out new e-gov initiatives 'Him Data Portal' What's it features

FTA negotiation between India and EU is in progress: Goyal