Partner In The Biofuel Plant Has Filed For Bankruptcy

British Airways has shelved a plan to turn household waste into biofuel in light of falling oil prices and the bankruptcy filing by its partner in the program.

The airline had partnered with U.S.-based Solena Fuels Corporation to build a plant on an unused industrial site in Essex for the "Green Sky London" project. The plant, which would have processed 500,000 metric tons of household waste into 50,000 metric tons of low-carbon jet fuel, was to have opened in 2017.

But the project really never got off the ground, and Buying Business Travel reports that Solena filed for bankruptcy three months ago.

Part of the problem, according to BA, is that aviation fuel is not afforded the same consideration for incentives as fuel for trucks and other ground-based vehicles by the British Conservative government. BA spokeswoman Cathy West told the U.K. newspaper The Guardian that “The government needs to support innovative aviation biofuels projects such as this if they are to progress. The UK is currently losing out to countries that have prioritized and incentivized developments in the sustainable aviation fuels market.”

BA had pledged to buy the plant's total output for the first 10 years of its existence. The airline is now reportedly looking for a waste-to-fuel partner that is a little further along in its due diligence.

FMI: www.britishairways.com