Pertamina and Garuda Indonesia successfully conducted the first test flight of a commercial aircraft using environmentally friendly Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). This collaboration is to realize the commitment to contribute to the carbon emission reduction program. The President Director of Garuda Indonesia, Irfaniaputra, said that the trial use of the Bioavtur J2.4 type SAF is part of Garuda Indonesia Group’s ongoing commitment and efforts to support various decarbonization initiatives, one of which is implemented through exploring the use of SAF on Garuda Indonesia’s flight operational lines.
“This is a milestone that we have been waiting for. This is certainly a matter of optimism for our collective steps to realize our big dream of realizing green energy in the national aviation ecosystem to support Indonesia’s commitment to achieving net zero emissions, which is projected to be realized in 2060. ,” said Irfan in a written statement, Tuesday (10/10/2023).
The first test flight was carried out for one hour on Wednesday (04/10) at hangar 4 of the Garuda Maintenance Facility AeroAsia, Soekarno Hatta International Airport area, Tangerang, Banten. The SAF testing was carried out in ground round and flight test stages on a Boeing 737-800 NG commercial aircraft with registration number PK-GFX belonging to Garuda Indonesia airline.
The PT LAPI ITB Research Team stated that the results were positive, namely that the aircraft’s response was good and controlled. With these results, Pertamina and Garuda Indonesia are ready to continue the BUMN synergy to the next stage, namely the plan to use SAF in Garuda Indonesia commercial flights.
“This is the first step which will hopefully become a sustainable mission for the aviation ecosystem to move more adaptively in making a contribution to environmental sustainability, by implementing SAF on Indonesian commercial flights,” said Irfan.
Pertamina President Director Nicke Widyawati said that Pertamina as an energy company continues to strive to develop green fuel, one of which is by producing SAF for the Indonesian aviation industry. SAF is produced at the Green Refinery facility of PT Kilang Pertamina Internasional, namely the Cilacap Refinery using the ester and fatty acid (HEFA) co-processing method. SAF has many advantages, including lower emissions compared to fossil fuel.
“Pertamina’s success in producing SAF is the first in the Southeast Asia region. It is hoped that SAF can soon be marketed by commercial flights as a major milestone in the development of green energy in Indonesia and contributing to the decarbonization program,” he continued.
Pertamina, as a leading company in the energy transition sector, is committed to supporting the 2060 Net Zero Emission target by continuing to encourage programs that have a direct impact on the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s). All of these efforts are in line with the implementation of Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) in all Pertamina business lines and operations.
October 10, 2023, detikFinance
(https://finance.detik.com/energi/d-6974566/keren-pertamina–garuda-berhasil-uji-terbang-dengan-bioavtur)