Lufthansa to use Jatenergy's jatropha oil in bio-jet trial

German airline Lufthansa has acquired jatropha oil from Jatenergy for use as bio-jet fuel in its trial of renewable jet fuel, which will be piloted in regular flights between Hamburg and Frankfurt.

The crude jatropha oil was supplied from Jatenergy's operations in Central Java, Indonesia, where it has partnered with PT Waterland International.

Lufthansa purchased 200 tonnes of the jatropha oil for $1,000 (€710) per tonne. Finland's Neste Oil will refine the oil into bio-jet.

ASTM International's approval for the blending of up to 50% of biofuel with conventional jet fuel earlier this year has resulted in a high demand for bio-jet fuel from airlines.

'We can't produce enough jatropha oil at the moment to meet demand,' says CEO of Jatenergy, Phil Hodgson. 'Apart from sales to airlines such as Lufthansa, there is also interest from power generators and traditional biodiesel producers at prices linked to vegetable oils such as palm oil. Palm oil has priced between $1,000-1,250 per tonne during 2011, which is around $140-180 per barrel. Our average ex-works production costs for the oil are around $460 per tonne, or $65 per barrel.'

Jatenergy currently cultivates its jatropha on 2,000 hectares of land. However, with expectations to sell 1,000 tonnes of jatropha oil this financial year, the company is planning to expand its plantation by 9,000 hectares. Within the next five to six years Hodgson says the company will have scaled up to over 100,000 hectares. 'Central Java has the potential to be a world scale plant oil producer,' he says.

Lufthansa announced its six-month trial using bio-jet fuel on regular commercial flights back in mid-July. The project will be used to monitor the reduction of CO2 emissions using bio-jet fuel compared to regular jet fuel. A 50/50 blend of bio-jet fuel will be used in one Airbus 321. The trial is expected to reduce CO2 emissions by up to 1,500 tonnes.

In addition to testing CO2 emissions, Lufthansa will also use these trial flights to examine the effect of bio-jet fuel on the aeroplane's engine, including maintenance and lifespan.