To make that happen, we need to recognise that the SAF value chain is more than the sum of its parts.
After all, SAF producers do not exist in a bubble; they won’t be able to secure investment or subsidies required to first establish and then grow production capacity unless they can reliably access jet fuel markets around the world.
Additionally airlines, airports and fuel suppliers will not be able to access the volumes they need to comply with mandates, without that same connection.
In leading SAF markets like the United Kingdom, that’s essential to ensuring the forthcoming wave of airport expansion at places such as Heathrow and Gatwick are sustainable economically as well as environmentally.
Without a robust and efficient infrastructure for storage, blending and distribution, the SAF ambitions of countries like the UK risk being grounded. That becomes even more important when you consider that even if the UK Government’s most ambitious plans for homegrown SAF production are met, then Britain’s airports will still rely on almost three-quarters of their supply coming from abroad.
Whether it is imported or produced in the UK, SAF will increasingly be traded as a separate component from traditional JetA1 fuel with which it must be blended with, because aviation fuel is a global market, with different geographies adopting divergent regulatory requirements for SAF use, in terms of volumes, feedstocks and production methods.
Producers will need the flexibility to tailor their sales to the markets best suited to their output.
So the ‘middle market’ that provides dedicated storage and blending SAF infrastructure is key to getting global SAF markets off the ground. However, what does that actually mean in practice?
The crucial role of terminals and pipelines
For this complex process, infrastructure decisions are paramount.
Airports, while advantaged by being at the final destination, often have limitations in dedicated SAF and JetA1 infrastructure, scalability and local expertise.
Refineries, though capable of handling large volumes, are primarily geared towards conventional production and may not be ideally equipped for the specific blending operations required for SAF outside their standard processes.
This is where Exolum’s vision for a SAF Superhighway in the UK, built on existing aviation fuel pipeline and terminal network, can deliver real value in scaling SAF markets.
At the heart of this vision is the principle that blending at established aviation fuel terminals, supported by extensive pipeline networks, offers a unique combination of advantages:
- Expertise and capacity: Terminals possess the operational know-how and large-scale blending capabilities to ensure supply resilience, with multiple tanks of varying sizes and the potential to create additional segregation capacity.
- Reduced costs and emissions: The pipeline network significantly reduces both transportation costs and carbon emissions compared to road transport. Blending at terminals strengthens the economic and carbon emissions value of SAF to the market and their contribution to carbon targets.
- Seamless integration: Terminals can leverage existing pipeline connections to refineries and airports, avoiding double handling of conventional jet fuel and offering open access for any party entering the SAF blending market.
An extensive pipeline network linking these terminals with producers and airports can provide the backbone for SAF’s 'middle market'.
What’s more, the efficiency of a pipeline system cannot be overstated. Transporting jet fuel by pipeline produces 99% fewer greenhouse gas emissions than by heavy goods vehicles (HGVs).
To put this in perspective, Exolum’s existing 2,000 km pipeline network - which accounts for 50% of the British network – effectively removes the equivalent of 200,000 JetA1 HGVs from UK roads each year.
Given there are approximately 600,000 registered HGVs of all types in the UK, replacing our pipeline system with road transport would necessitate a staggering 33% increase in the national HGV fleet – an unthinkable scenario for both carbon emissions and road congestion.
A blueprint for the future
For SAF producers, the real value of the UK’s SAF Superhighway is best understood when its place in the wider SAF supply chain is taken into account.
Companies like Exolum, with a long history of supporting the wider biofuels sector, are uniquely positioned to deliver that role.
The company already has a strong track record of working with biofuel production plants by handling feedstocks and storing intermediate and finished products.
However, in the case of the SAF Superhighway, we can deliver further value to production plants with that distribution network that supplies jet fuel for 40% of flights leaving the UK each year.
Creating this Superhighway requires investment in adapting existing liquid tanks and constructing new, segregated storage facilities for the careful handling of both blended and unblended SAF.
Wider infrastructure is key too, taking advantage of the UK’s deep-water jetty capacity for imported SAF, multi-modal connectivity to connect producers with suppliers via rail, ship/barge and road and pipeline coverage for blended SAF distribution.
We want to build on these strengths, by seeking investment opportunities in pipeline connections, expanded jetty capabilities, segregated storage and wider rail network connectivity.
The good news is Exolum not merely planning; we are acting. We recently committed £4.5 million (€5.2 million) to create the UK's first SAF blending hub at Redcliffe Bay, near Bristol.
This facility, partly spurred by the Government’s SAF mandate, will connect SAF producers to our wider aviation fuel pipeline network, bringing SAF supplies to major airports like Heathrow and Gatwick, as well as regional airports including Bristol, Cardiff and Exeter.
The investment includes tank conversion, new pumping facilities, a blending rig, filtration systems and segregation valves. Initially supporting imported SAF, Redcliffe Bay will become instrumental in enabling domestic SAF production from 2028, providing producers with access to the wider aviation fuel marketplace.
Writing infrastructure into policymaking
We’re proud that Exolum is making substantial, market-first moves in the UK, committing strategically significant amounts of capital to the SAF ecosystem. Scaling the supply chain needed to move SAF efficiently from production to aircrafft requires private sector investment, especially at this early stage when the industry is still nascent.
Alongside private sector commitments, the UK Government deserves credit for its SAF mandate, commitment to the role of SAF in enabling airport expansion and progressing the Sustainable Aviation Fuel Bill.
These measures create demand certainty, which is essential for bankable projects.
However, we also need to consider how wider policy can not only help to highlight the environmental superiority of a pipeline network, thereby incentivising its use, but also simplify regulatory compliance to create a more cohesive and efficient national distribution system for SAF aligned with our vision of a SAF Superhighway.
Together, these measures will significantly de-risk and accelerate the development of critical SAF logistics infrastructure.
This will lead to a more cost-effective, efficient and resilient supply chain, ultimately enabling the UK to meet its ambitious SAF mandate volumes, attract greater private investment and realise the full potential of the intended greenhouse gas reductions for the aviation sector.
The infrastructure imperative
Decarbonising aviation is a monumental task with no single silver bullet. It is as much a logistics challenge as it is a technological or regulatory one.
The infrastructure to move SAF from plant to aircradt – the intricate network of storage, blending and distribution that constitutes the 'middle market' – is not a peripheral issue.
It is a critical enabler, the essential link between production and consumption. By prioritising and investing in this sector, the UK can transform its commitment to net-zero aviation from a distant goal into an accessible, scalable reality.
For more information: Visit exolum.com
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