India to produce jet fuel from used cooking oil by year-end

India is set to take a giant leap in green aviation with its first sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) plant beginning production by December this year. The Indian Oil Corporation (IOC), the country’s largest refiner and fuel retailer, will manufacture 35,000 tonnes of SAF annually at its Panipat refinery in Haryana, using discarded cooking oil sourced from hotels, restaurants, and food chains.

The move follows IOC becoming the first Indian company to secure the ISCC CORSIA certification — a global prerequisite for commercial SAF production — placing India firmly in line with international carbon reduction targets for aviation.

“By 2027, this capacity will be sufficient to meet India’s 1 per cent SAF blending requirement for international flights,” IOC chairman Arvinder Singh Sahney said. “The main challenge is collecting feedstock from smaller users like households, though large hotel chains and restaurants can be tapped easily.”

SAF, derived from sustainable feedstocks but chemically identical to conventional jet fuel, can power aircraft without any engine modifications. Global aviation experts say SAF is expected to deliver more than 60 per cent of the industry’s carbon reduction in the decades ahead.

With Europe already enforcing blending mandates, IOC expects European carriers flying into India to emerge as early buyers, while exports are also on the horizon. Demand is projected to surge after 2027, when the mandatory phase of CORSIA comes into force, compelling airlines worldwide to offset emissions growth beyond 2020 levels.

India’s National Biofuel Coordination Committee has already set initial blending targets — 1 per cent in 2027 and 2 per cent in 2028 — for international flights. Domestic mandates are likely to follow, though the high cost of SAF, currently about three times that of regular jet fuel, has delayed early adoption.

Beyond used cooking oil, IOC is developing additional pathways for SAF production, including alcohol-to-jet fuel using ethanol. Other Indian players are also building SAF projects, though each unit must undergo stringent international certification before commercial rollout.

With IOC’s pioneering step, India is poised to join the ranks of countries driving aviation’s green transition — this time with jet fuel born not from crude oil, but from discarded frying pans.