Shaping the Future of Aviation Decarbonisation: Key insights at the upcoming Sustainable Aviation Futures Congress
Harry Marples
Content Director, EU Congress
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Sustainable Aviation Futures
Key themes in sustainable aviation continue to evolve in 2025, shaping the industry’s path towards aviation decarbonisation by 2050 ambitions. Some trends are emerging for the first time, while others remain central to scaling ambitions. This piece explores the most pressing topics set to dominate discussions at the Sustainable Aviation Futures Congress in Amsterdam this May.
2025 marks the first year of ReFuel EU Aviation, requiring 2% SAF at EU Airports from 2025, rising to 70% by 2050 – a milestone sparking both optimism and debate. While mandates signals progress and industry supply certainty, questions remain on implementation, alignment with other European regulations, SAF export potential, and its impact on EU ETS. At Sustainable Aviation Futures Congress, an exclusive presentation and Q&A with European Commission leaders – Felipe Cornelis (Director General) and Guillermo Rebollo de Garay (Policy Officer) – will provide crucial insights into EU policy and the road to 2030.
As European regulations tighten SAF sustainability requirements, the rise of global SAF corridors is unlocking new opportunities for feedstock diversification. At Sustainable Aviation Futures, global case studies highlight the evolving global SAF landscape – from China and Singapore’s competition for HEFA-derived SAF to the United States’ feedstock capabilities and impact of changes to the IRA, to the potential dominance of ethanol-derived SAF in Latin America. With 220 speakers from 40 countries, the Congress will explore SAF prospects worldwide, focusing on certification alignment, book-and-claim models and trade corridors for SAF and the logistics of transporting SAF. Brining together the world’s leading SAF voices, exploring different avenues of SAF production, the event is set to shape the future of sustainable aviation.
Scaling SAF production remains a top industry priority, with financial mechanisms and investment strategies at the center of the conversation. At Sustainable Aviation Futures, Bloomberg New Energy Finance will host a dedicated SAF Financing stream, tackling the critical challenge of moving projects to Final Investment Decision (FID). With EASA projecting 5.5 million tonnes of SAF in Europe by 2030, and costs still five times higher than conventional jet fuel, unlocking investment is essential for industry growth. Featuring 40+ financial experts, discussions will cover policy-driven investment, funding pilot projects, and creating market certainty—key to making SAF a scalable reality.
As Europe's aviation decarbonisation evolves, eFuels are taking center stage alongside SAF. With 2025 marking a pivotal year for eFuel projects to reach FID, the race is on to ramp up production by 2030 to meet the European Commission's synthetic fuel mandate. Project Sky Power is leading the charge, uniting industry leaders to accelerate the takeoff of e-SAF. As the eFuel stream partner at Sustainable Aviation Futures, they will present case studies on scaling production, overcoming hurdles, and navigating regulations. Featuring top speakers—including KLM CEO Marjan Rintel—the event will explore how collaboration is key to making eFuels a reality.
Sustainable Aviation Futures dives into every facet of aviation decarbonization, tackling the most pressing industry opportunities. As non-CO₂ emissions and contrail avoidance gain momentum in the sustainability conversation, the event will bring together global experts to explore contrail mitigation, advanced engine technology, and fleet renewal as critical emission-reduction strategies. Beyond SAF, discussions on fleet modernization, carbon offsetting programs, and corporate sustainability strategies continue to shape the market. By uniting industry leaders and innovators, the event will showcase the latest solutions driving aviation’s path to net zero.
Join us in Amsterdam this May to get a comprehensive insight into the key themes and questions dominating the global aviation decarbonisation landscape.