Finnair flies to New York with cooking oil

A Finnish airline ran a flight to New York on Tuesday using recycled cooking oil, timed to coincide with the UN Climate Summit. Finnair said the biofuel mixture powering the Airbus A330 is […]

A Finnish airline ran a flight to New York on Tuesday using recycled cooking oil, timed to coincide with the UN Climate Summit.

Finnair said the biofuel mixture powering the Airbus A330 is partly made from oil used by restaurants.

It was provided by SkyNRG Nordic, a joint venture between SkyNRG and Statoil Aviation.

The airline has tested greener fuels since 2011 but says the cost of such fuels is more than twice the price of conventionally produced jet fuel, making it “not yet economically viable for any airline to operate with exclusively”.

The airline is “committed” to bringing down the cost of sustainable biofuel for everyday use, said Kati Ihamäki, the firm’s Vice President of Sustainable Development.

Finland’s Minister for International Development Pekka Haavisto added: “As air traffic contributes 2% of all greenhouse gas emissions, it is very important to have this trial with the use of biofuels.

“If the price of oil rises and biofuels become cheaper, there will hopefully be a day when we’ll be able to replace at least some of the fossil fuels with fuels made of renewable and waste material.”

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