The alternative aviation fuel opportunity: Why the UK needs to stay the course on the SAF Mandate
Policy Briefing | October 2026
Summary
The UK’s aviation decarbonisation strategy relies on scaling alternatives to fossil fuels for aviation, supported by measures such as the Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Mandate, funding schemes and a planned Revenue Certainty Mechanism (RCM). As pressure grows to amend the SAF Mandate, the government must protect investor confidence and maintain a clear pathway for domestic alternative fuel production.
Protect the mandated targets: changing the SAF Mandate’s ambition at this early stage in its operation runs the risk of undermining investor certainty at a time when projects must be nearing final investment decision.
Preserve feedstock eligibility criteria: reaffirm commitment to exclude crop-based fuels from the mandate, while supporting fuel pathways like PtL which offer a scalable and sustainable alternative in the long-run.
Keep the course on the RCM: the contract allocation strategy for the first RCM allocation round must be updated to include dedicated support for PtL projects, which face distinct barriers to commercialisation due to their nascency.
Help to bridge the price gap by putting a price on international aviation emissions: for long-haul travel, PtL fuels will begin to be more competitive if aviation is paying for its emissions via an extension of the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) to international journeys
