News
IATA highlights corporate demand as a catalyst for scaling SAF
October 15th 2026
The International Air Transport Association (IATA), Airbus, and Accenture released a SAF Environmental Attribute Certificate (EAc) Market study estimating that corporate purchases could support 1.0 to 1.9 million tonnes of SAF by 2030, up from an estimated 323,000 tonnes in 2024. Read More » This strong demand signal for more SAF production depends on addressing factors limiting corporate participation, such as unclear accounting rules, high prices, and purchasing complexity, IATA said.
“SAF is aviation’s most important decarbonization lever, but airlines cannot shoulder the cost of scaling it up alone. Corporate buyers have a unique opportunity to help build the SAF market, contribute to air transport’s energy transition, and benefit from recognized scope 3 emissions reductions in the process. The potential is substantial, but it will only be realized if companies can participate with confidence, knowing that their contributions will count and that the process is simple and credible. Getting these foundations right will help unlock investment, grow the market, and accelerate SAF production,” said Marie Owens Thomsen, IATA’s Senior Vice President, Sustainability and Chief Economist.
“This study clearly demonstrates that corporate demand is a powerful, untapped catalyst for scaling SAF. By giving corporate buyers the accounting certainty they need to co-fund the SAF premium, book-and-claim can transform potential interest into firm commitments, sending the near-term demand signal fuel producers need to accelerate production and lower costs across the industry,” said Julien Manhes, Vice President, Sustainable Aviation Fuel and Carbon Dioxide Removal Development, Airbus.
“SAF will do most of the heavy lifting on aviation decarbonization, but airlines and a select group of corporates cannot carry its cost all the way to 2050. Only around 15% of surveyed corporates are purchasing today, but the majority are waiting for the price to come down, for the carbon accounting to settle, and for the buying process to get simpler. Airlines that establish SAF cost-recovery capabilities now will be best positioned when growth in the SAF EAc market accelerates. The opportunity today is to focus on the sectors where demand is already emerging, making SAF attributes simple and transparent to buy, and invest in the systems, partnerships, and customer relationships that can scale as the market matures,” said Jesko Neuenburg, Global Aviation & Travel Sustainability Lead, Accenture.
The newly published study identifies three priorities to enable greater corporate participation: Clear and consistent accounting rules, transparent and interoperable tracking systems that prevent double counting and ensure environmental integrity; and simpler purchasing mechanisms, including greater price transparency, lower minimum purchase volumes and shorter contract durations. “Corporate participation alone will not deliver the scale of SAF that aviation requires. Continued government support, effective incentives and a significant expansion of production capacity remain essential. But every additional corporate purchase converts climate ambition into real market demand and helps distribute the cost of decarbonization more broadly. The next step is making participation easier, more accessible, and more credible for companies of all sizes,” said Owens Thomsen.
