Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd’s Visakh Refinery has marked a significant milestone in India’s clean aviation journey with the commissioning of a Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) demonstration plant. The facility will manufacture SAF by co-processing used cooking oil within the refinery’s Full Conversion Hydrocracker Unit, making use of existing infrastructure rather than building a greenfield setup.
The move strengthens India’s pathway towards achieving its SAF blending objectives—1 per cent by 2027, 2 per cent by 2028 and 5 per cent by 2030—while signalling steady progress in the country’s broader decarbonisation agenda for the aviation sector.
According to HPCL’s forward plan, once CORSIA certification is secured, the Visakh Refinery is expected to begin commercial production of around 10 thousand metric tonnes of SAF annually from January 2027. The initiative not only supports emission reduction in aviation but also promotes a circular economy by converting waste cooking oil into high-value, low-carbon fuel.
The project aligns with the International Civil Aviation Organization’s Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA), a global framework aimed at curbing emissions growth from international air travel beyond a defined baseline. By integrating SAF into conventional refining operations, HPCL is contributing to both global compliance standards and India’s long-term Net Zero ambitions.
India’s SAF ecosystem is gaining momentum, with several public sector undertakings and research institutions actively involved in fuel development and technology advancement. These include Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum, Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals, Chennai Petroleum Corporation, CSIR–Indian Institute of Petroleum, and other academic and industrial stakeholders.
The commissioning of the SAF demonstration plant at Vizag underscores India’s growing focus on energy self-reliance, sustainable mobility and cleaner skies—positioning the country as an emerging player in the global sustainable aviation fuel landscape.