South Korea announces mandatory SAF blending for departing international flights from 2027

South Korea has announced compulsory use of blended sustainable aviation fuel for international flights departing its airports from 2027. The blending mandate will start at 1% and rise to 10% by 2035. From 2028, international airlines will also need to use SAF-blended fuel for at least 90% of their annual refuelling at South Korean airports. The new policies were devised jointly by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport (MOLIT) and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) as part of their Sustainable Aviation Fuel Blending Mandate Roadmap. Additionally, a SAF Alliance was established to unite representatives of the aviation and refining sectors with related agencies to expedite supply and use of the fuel. In a carrot-and-stick approach, the ministries foreshadowed rewards for airlines which use more than the mandated minimum blend of SAF, and for passengers making specific contributions towards the cost of the fuel but also warned of steep penalties for non-compliance.

The new package of SAF initiatives follows the South Korean government’s announcement in August last year of a SAF Expansion Strategy, which outlined a mid-to-long term vision to promote use of the fuel in line with global efforts to help decarbonise air transport.

It also broadens plans to develop and deploy SAF within the greater Asia-Pacific region, the world’s largest collective air transport market, where various strategies have been announced or deployed in countries including Singapore, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, India, Indonesia, China and Australia.

Beyond the initial 1% SAF mandate for international flights, the government said the blending ratio would increase to 3-5% in 2030 and 7-10% in 2035.

Specific ratios will be decided in 2026 and 2029 based on the government’s assessment of domestic SAF production capacity, international obligations and global market conditions.

Fuel suppliers, in particular refining companies and petroleum exporters and importers, will need to meet blending obligations from 2027, with compliance determined by the proportion of SAF supplied each year for infusion into jet fuel for international flights from South Korea.

But the requirement for airlines to ensure that SAF-blended fuel comprises 90% of their annual volumes for departing flights will not take effect until 2028, once a refuelling obligation management system is established during 2026-27, and pilot operations are performed in the first half of 2028.

South Korea will recognise as SAF any aviation fuels which have achieved carbon reduction levels required under ICAO standards. This assumes the inclusion of lower carbon aviation fuels (LCAF), defined as fossil-based aviation fuels that achieve a minimum 10% reduction in life-cycle emissions compared to an ICAO baseline.

In the first half of 2026, quality standards will be established for bio-aviation fuels, while after 2030, a weighting system will be considered for fuels produced from feedstocks with higher carbon reduction rates.

As well, additional incentives will be considered for next-generation production technologies such as renewable synthetic SAF.

The government revealed that penalties for airlines which failed to achieve SAF uptake obligations may be set at up to 150% of the average transaction price multiplied by the shortfall in fuel uptake for the year, but added that this initiative would be deferred for one year.

It also said that airlines would be able to defer up to 20% of their uptake obligations and fulfil them within the following three years.

Once the SAF mandates are introduced, new airlines will be exempted from compliance during their first three years of commercial operations, and exemptions may be granted to any operator, either new or existing, where there are safety concerns or other unavoidable impacts such as natural disasters.

But as an incentive to help build demand for and use of SAF, the government announced that airlines refuelling and operating in excess of the SAF blending requirement would receive increased points from 1 to 3.5 in the allocation of international air traffic rights – the approvals needed to establish many international air services.

As well, to minimise the administrative burden of SAF costs on the air transport industry, the government said it would consider introducing direct subsidy support to airlines which used SAF-blended fuel on flights from South Korea, instead of the current system of reducing airport fees for airlines as a reward for using SAF on outbound flights.

In 2025-26, the government estimates such usage fee reductions equate to W500 million ($357,000) from Incheon International Airport Corporation in Seoul and W100 million ($71,400) from Korea Airport Corporation – a total of W600 million ($428,400).

The government also said passengers making financial contributions for the use of SAF – through add-on donations when booking their flights – would be rewarded by airlines with product enhancements such as access to airports lounges, preferential seating on flights or even “SAF-related souvenirs”.

The South Korean decree for international flights builds upon a 1% blending ratio already deployed by nine domestic airlines which use locally produced SAF on selected short-haul routes.

Korean Air has expanded use of domestically produced SAF on routes to Kobe and Osaka in Japan, following a year-long trial on its Incheon-Haneda route. The carrier started using a 1% SAF blend on flights to Kobe and Osaka in September. The SAF is produced from used cooking oil and sourced from HD Hyundai Oilbank and GS Caltex.

Photo: Korean Air Airbus A321neo

Tony Harrington
Correspondent