Volaris looks to US for SAF supplies

Low-cost Mexican airline Volaris is looking to adopt sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) including a potential deal in the US, Reuters reported.
"We have to work on developing supply in Mexico," CEO Enrique Beltranena said.
Beltranena added that the airline had flown with sustainable fuel just once due to the lack of local availability.
"Really, SAF is an ethanol. And what we don't have in Mexico is a way of converting that ethanol, of mixing it to become jet fuel," he said.
SAF can be made from feedstocks such as used cooking oils, crop residues and other waste products, and is expected to have the largest impact in lowering airlines' carbon emissions. It remains in scarce supply, however, and is costlier than traditional fuels.
Volaris has been working to finalise a deal to obtain SAF in the US, which would fuel US flights to Mexico.
Rival airline VivaAerobus and other industry leaders said they were seeking proposals to accelerate and scale SAF production in Mexico.
Volaris is also eying route expansions, shooting for up to 300 domestic routes and 145 US routes, along with more than 100 other routes in the medium-term, executives said in a presentation.
The US route expansions depend on Mexico recovering its Category 1 safety rating from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which downgraded Mexico in 2021 for what it said was noncompliance with safety standards.