What was created as a role model for all future green airports, is now on hold due to sudden budget cuts of dedicated state funds. Germany had granted that funding with the objective of enabling aviation to start using sustainable fuels in the near future. However, struggling with budget problems, Berlin has frozen the financial resources originally promised to support the project. As result of the funding cuts, participating companies are considering migrating abroad.
Speeding up SAF availability
The regional airport, Schönhagen near Berlin, was previously referred to as “Aviation Silicon Valley” in this publication, due to its innovative drive and first mover qualities. While larger airports are creating scenarios to be turned into reality sometime in the 2030s, when petrol giants finally transition to sustainable e-fuels for major airlines, the pioneer Schönhagen was planning to start rolling out its infrastructure this very year, 2024. As a key element of this concept, the start-up, Spark e-Fuels, co-financed by BASF among others, has the role of delivering Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), for use by all regional and business aircraft flying from Schönhagen. Home to flight schools and even creators of (hydrogen) electric aircraft, Schönhagen and its twin airport, Strausberg, have significantly increased in flight movements during the pandemic due to lack of commercial line flights, but also because Berlin’s international airport ‘Willy Brandt’ (BER), needs to concentrate its capacities on long-haul flights of global airline operators.
Silicon Valley not so far away
Spark e-Fuels was founded in 2021 by the climate tech expert, Dr. Arno Zimmermann, who already extensively analyzed the techno-economics of e-fuels at the prestigious MIT Energy Initiative in 2018. Together with co-founders, Dr. Mathias Bösl, an Ex-BCG consultant and experienced climate tech business builder, and Dr. Julia Bauer, a brilliant chemist and e-fuels enthusiast, they made it to the next level. Together, the young German team has the proper setup to start its journey into revolutionizing how e-fuels are produced.
Key factors: Local beats Global
The locally generated renewable energy is produced using a process that can cover fluctuating electricity levels, and green hydrogen in combination with sustainable CO2. The technology makes e-fuel an affordable alternative to fossil kerosene and will demonstrate that Europe has the capabilities to reach the climate objectives for aviation, starting in 2025 with minimum 2% SAF on all flights that touch the continent, and rapidly increasing that proportion over the following years.
Will EAGLE fly?
E-fuels for Aviation, Generated from Local renewable Energy, in short EAGLE, started as a 180-page feasibility study in 2021, financed by the state of Brandenburg and the European Union. Like Otto Lilienthal with his first flight, EAGLE must move from theory into reality, and show that it can be done. Lilienthal’s tragic accident happened after he proved to the world that humans can make it off the ground. Will EAGLE die before it even flies? “That would be a tragedy”, says Prof. Dr. Andreas Timmermann, Managing Director of Berlin-Brandenburg Aerospace Allianz (BBAA), the organization that groups sustainable aircraft and engine manufacturers such as APUS, RS.aero and Rolls-Royce, amongst other companies and institutions. EAGLE was presented by the professor and his team of experts at the ILA Berlin International Airshow in 2022, resulting in growing interest all over Europe. Regions and their airports in France, The Netherlands and Norway, started building a consortium to speed up their own local SAF production based on the model created in Berlin.
Sustainable propulsion
On top of SAF, hydrogen aviation will also benefit from such an international network of innovative regional airports. Locally produced green hydrogen is part of the concept. Fueling standards will be developed, so that flying hydrogen pioneers like APUS, ZeroAvia and Dronamics can establish regular routes for individual flights and commercial services. Hydrogen Experts such as the authors, Dr Klaus Herwig and Erik Schäfer, with their newly published ‘Hydrogen Horizons’, promote the idea of leading by example when it comes to implementing hydrogen infrastructures. Change management is the hardest part of the energy transition, and inertia has caused many brilliant concepts to remain in the drawer for far too long. But, as was mentioned by a panelist at the EU Hydrogen Forum last June: “to create innovation we need real Power Plants, not just PowerPoint.” To which one could add: “and to introduce a realistic way of significantly reducing carbon emissions in aviation”.
Hugo Duchemin
The author is Managing Director Comworxx S.A.S., France
