Singapore to study hydrogen as aviation fuel

The Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), Changi Airport (CAG), aircraft manufacturer Airbus and industrial gas firm Linde signed an agreement on 15 February to study hydrogen's use as an aviation fuel and for ground operations at Changi Airport.

The firms aim to analyse projected aviation demand and supply for hydrogen, regional readiness, and the commercial and technical feasibility of adopting hydrogen.

The firms will evaluate the infrastructure requirements for an airport hydrogen hub and the electrification of airport operations with hydrogen fuel cells. The joint study leverages CAAS and CAG's knowledge of airport infrastructure development, Linde's expertise in the production, processing, storage and distribution of hydrogen, and Airbus' insight on hydrogen-powered aircraft for ground operations and aircraft configuration, said CAAS.

"While our immediate focus is on sustainable aviation fuel, we also need to explore longer-term alternatives such as hydrogen to better understand the potential and seize opportunities," said the director-general of CAAS, Han Kok Juan.

CAAS, along with Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Singapore-headquartered global investment company Temasek are already looking into the use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) at Changi Airport, and the end-to-end cost components in the certification and blending of SAF at local facilities. The group last year called for producers to provide SAF to Changi Airport for a pilot scheme beginning this year.

Under the pilot scheme, SIA will buy blended SAF from ExxonMobil comprising 1.25mn l of SAF. ExxonMobil will begin delivering the blended fuel to Changi Airport by the end of July, and all SIA and Scoot flights will start to use the blended fuel from the third quarter of the year. The year-long programme is expected to reduce about 2,500t of CO2 emissions.

"Sustainability is a key focus area for CAG as we strive towards making Changi Airport a sustainable air hub, with the longer-term aspiration towards net zero carbon by 2050," said CAG's executive vice president of airport development, Yam Kum Weng.

By Prethika Nair