Delta & Shell close SAF deal for LAX hub

Delta Air Lines and Shell Aviation have closed a deal in which the airline will purchase up to 10 million gallons of neat (i.e. unblended) SAF over a two-year period for use at Los Angeles International Airport. This will increase the airline’s SAF commitments to over 200 million gallons.

The 10 million gallons of neat SAF, to be supplied by Shell Aviation, bring Delta one step closer to achieving 10% SAF usage by end of 2030. According to Pam Fletcher, Delta’s Chief Sustainability Officer, closing this deal is an important signal to the world. “There isn’t enough SAF available today to fuel the world’s commercial airlines for a single day. That’s why Delta continues creating demand signals like this arrangement with Shell – to show this major decarbonization lever is worth investing in and growing.”

The agreement also includes Delta testing the tracking of Shell SAF delivery and its use data through Avelia, one of the world’s first blockchain-powered digital SAF solutions, launched by Shell Aviation and its partners last year. This technology is expected to enable Delta to track SAF and environmental data with full transparency to reduce its emissions as well as that of its corporate SAF customers while avoiding issues such as double-counting.