mission-newenergy-limited

1 Clean Getaway: Meat Waste Joins Biofuels At Luxury Jet Show

By Allison Lampert

LAS VEGAS, Oct 22 (Reuters) - At the world's most significant market program in Las Vegas luxury jets are tempting buyers with their streamlined shapes, plush cabins - and progressively, their usage of alternative fuels.

Fuel manufacturers and jetmakers are keen to showcase unique types of air travel fuel considered less harmful to the climate, from utilized cooking oil to the clearly less glamorous meat waste.

Business jet operators, like airline companies, have actually acquiesced environmental on air travel and devoted to cutting in half carbon emissions by 2050 compared with 2005.

Their hope is that embracing sustainable fuel to suppress emissions might make company jets more appealing to ecologically conscious buyers - especially corporations facing questions over sustainability from investors or green campaign groups.

The schedule of less polluting personal jets could likewise spare the rich and popular the unfavorable promotion experienced by Britain's Prince Harry and his better half Meghan over a current personal jet trip to southern France.

Five Gulfstream jets on screen in Las Vegas are using California-produced fuel from inedible beef tallow.

The most recent waste-based fuels consist of "fats, grease and oils that are byproducts of the food market," said Bryan Sherbacow, chief commercial officer of Boston-based biofuel manufacturer World Energy, which produces fuel from meat waste utilized by Gulfstream.

"All of our product is inedible."

A few of the other 79 airplane on display are anticipated to be powered by 150,000 gallons of other renewable fuel blends anticipated to be pumped at the show.

FLIGHT SHAMING

Private jets represent less than 0.1% of overall annual carbon emissions globally, however can emit, on average, approximately 20 times more carbon emissions per passenger mile than jetliners, according to the London-based private charter firm Victor.

Prince Harry has protected his occasional use of personal jets to ensure his family's security, and has stated that on the rare occasions he does not fly commercially he offsets his emissions.

But planemakers say incidents such as the furore over his itinerary have actually included fresh difficulties for a market currently making every effort to justify its contribution to cutting corporate expenses.

"Incidents of flight shaming including making use of personal jets are unfortunate when you consider that our industry has provided fuel effectiveness improvements of 40% over the previous 40 years," said Bombardier Aviation President David Coleal.

Bombardier believes increased sustainable fuel use will help the industry make inroads with corporations and rich purchasers. According to industry data, billionaires just have a 19% company jet ownership rate.

But even an image makeover - with jets sporting stickers like "this aircraft flies on eco-friendly fuels" and organisers including alternative fuel pumps for visiting airplanes - is not likely to satisfy all critics at the Oct 22-24 high-end jet event.

Environmentalists and some experts remain skeptical that biojetfuels, generally combined 50-50 with kerosene, will make a substantial impact on public understandings about luxury travel.

"No amount of Jatropha or Brazil-nut fuel can make service jets look eco-friendly," said air travel analyst Richard Aboulafia.

Demand from company jet operators for renewable fuels now far surpasses supply and their interest might drive future production, Sherbacow stated.

World Energy, which produces 40 million gallons of biofuel at its California plant, could broaden production up to 150 million gallons by 2022.

Corporate charter business and experts are also seeing more interest from customers who want to purchase carbon credits to balance out emissions from their flights.

Brian Proctor, CEO of Mente Group, a U.S. consultancy, stated emissions contributed in a corporate jet utilization research study his business just recently finished for a Fortune 500 company.

"At the end of the day, I think that cost, cost per hour, range, speed and performance, that's still the (sales) chauffeur. But I believe individuals are becoming more familiar with the sustainability of operations and how it impacts the world." (Reporting By Allison Lampert, Editing by Tim Hepher and Alexandra Hudson)