Sustainable Aviation Buyers Alliance Launches Advanced, Next-Generation SAF Procurement DEADLINE August 29, 2025

(Sustainable Aviation Buyers Alliance) SABA's third RFP seeks to leverage corporate demand to help move a next-generation SAF facility to final investment decision.

Today (May 6, 2025), the Sustainable Aviation Buyers Alliance (SABA) released a request for proposal (RFP) to increase the supply of next-generation sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), including power-to-liquids and those using advanced bio-based feedstocks. This first-of-its-kind aggregated SAF procurement is designed to deliver a much-needed boost to scalable long-term SAF production capacity. By focusing the RFP on next-gen fuels, SABA seeks to channel investment toward SAF with fewer feedstock constraints than today's commercially available fuels, enabling more effective long-term decarbonization of the aviation sector.

SABA members include over 35 companies from a broad range of sectors, including finance, technology, media and entertainment, business consulting, and others seeking to reduce their aviation emissions through investment in sustainable aviation fuel. Through this RFP, SABA will facilitate 5 to 10-year forward purchasing commitments on behalf of its members at sufficient volumes to support final investment decision (FID) for a new next-generation SAF production facility.

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"The SAF market is growing rapidly but the technologies we need to fully decarbonize the aviation sector are still in their infancy," said Kim Carnahan, CEO of the Center for Green Market Activation and head of SABA Secretariat. "Investment needs to happen now if we want these technologies to scale post-2030 and keep the aviation sector on track to meet its long-term net zero goals."

SAF represents the best near-term opportunity to decarbonize aviation as it is a drop-in fuel that can be used in today's aircraft fleet. Despite significant recent growth, SAF still makes up less than 1% of total aviation fuels used today with the market dominated by SAF made from traditional feedstocks, such as waste oils, that face limitations to scale beyond 2030. SAF with the greatest scalability potential, using feedstocks such as renewable hydrogen, agriculture and forestry residues, and municipal solid waste, is only a small portion of the currently available SAF. Without focused investment today, these fuels may not be available in the quantities needed to meet global decarbonization objectives.

SABA is working with its corporate partners to generate the demand signal needed to give advanced SAF producers confidence to scale production. Through a book and claim model, corporate customers will be purchasing sustainable aviation fuel certificates (SAFc) that allow them to invest in SAF and capture the environmental benefits, even if the fuel does not flow directly into the planes they fly on. The travelers' investment allows them to make a greenhouse gas emissions reduction claim on their climate disclosures, while the physical SAF flows to an aircraft operator.

"Book and claim is the bridge between the aviation industry's sustainable fuel ambitions and scalable real-world production — and SABA is helping build it," said Bryan Fisher, Managing Director at SABA co-founder RMI. "By mobilizing corporate demand and catalyzing investment in cutting-edge fuel production, we can fast-track innovation, expand high-integrity supply, and deliver the climate results the aviation sector urgently needs."

Since SABA's launch in 2021, it has helped channel approximately \$200 million total SAF investment: first through a 2021 proof of concept pilot procurement for a short-term offtake period, followed by 2023-2024's groundbreaking multi-year procurement involving 27 participants and supporting approximately 50 million gallons of SAF. Through the RFP announced today, SABA is targeting longer-term offtakes to help plants get to FID by 2026 and be operational by 2030.

"This RFP is an opportunity for corporate leaders, forward-looking airlines and next generation fuel producers to work together toward a truly net-zero aviation sector," said Elizabeth Sturcken, Vice President at *******************************Environmental Defense Fund********************************, a SABA co-founder*. "We must be strategic in how we grow the SAF market with environmental integrity so that we can decarbonize the aviation sector without placing new demands on limited feedstocks or land resources that may create new environmental problems."

By participating in this next-gen procurement, SABA members will be able to meet their emission reduction targets for air travel and air freight through advanced purchases of SAFc connected to next-gen SAF meeting SABA's rigorous sustainability criteria.

SAF suppliers interested in responding to the RFP are encouraged to learn more by downloading the RFP and supporting documentation.

While the RFP announced today is focused on next generation SAF, SABA continues to support its members in purchasing high-integrity commercially available SAF. For more on SABA's 2025 procurements, including the near-term procurement opportunities available through SAFc Connect, see SABA's website and register for SABA's upcoming prospective member webinar.

About SABA

The Sustainable Aviation Buyers Alliance (SABA) is a joint initiative of RMI and Environmental Defense Fund, with expert support from the Center for Green Market Activation, focused on accelerating the path to net-zero aviation by driving investment in, and adoption of, high-integrity sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and supporting companies, airlines, and freight customers in achieving their climate goals.

More information on SABA can be found at www.flysaba.org or follow us on LinkedIn.

RFP responses are due August 29, 2025 at 11:59PM Pacific Time.

Excerpt from Sustainable Aviation Buyers Alliance: 'SAFc Connect' will increase liquidity and transparency in the SAF market while helping companies meet their aviation decarbonization goals

Washington, D.C. – May 28, 2025 Today, the Sustainable Aviation Buyers Alliance (SABA) announced the go-live of SAFc Connect, a secure online platform to help connect corporate buyers with sustainable aviation fuel certificate (SAFc) providers and accelerate near-term progress in decarbonizing aviation. SAFc Connect gives participants a more flexible pathway to invest in high-integrity, commercially available SAF, and is designed to support a faster offer-to-sale cycle that lets SAFc providers tap into near term corporate demand. SABA surveys indicate that SABA member companies accessing SAFc Connect have an immediate demand for approximately \$30 million worth of SAF certificates. The annual demand volume is expected to grow significantly year-on-year as SABA membership expands and companies ramp up investment to meet 2030 climate targets. Approximately six SAFc providers — including Alaska Airlines, Future Energy Global, International Airlines Group (parent company of leading airlines including Aer Lingus, British Airways, Iberia, LEVEL, and Vueling), JetBlue, Targray, and Valero — have committed to participating in SAFc Connect with up to double that number expected to come on board in the coming months.

"To meet the decarbonization goals for the aviation sector, we need to encourage both near and long-term investment into SAF," said Kim Carnahan, CEO of the Center for Green Market Activation and Head of SABA Secretariat. "With SAFc Connect, participants have a continuous SAF procurement opportunity that progresses climate goals now, while strengthening the foundations of the SAF market for future growth."

Since launching in 2021, SABA has worked with corporate buyers to aggregate demand for over \$400 million in SAF certificates: first through a proof-of-concept pilot procurement and followed by 2023-2024's groundbreaking multi-year procurement that supported tens of millions of gallons of SAF. Earlier this month, SABA launched a third RFP for next-generation fuels designed to facilitate 5 to 10-year forward purchasing commitments on behalf of its members at sufficient volumes to support final investment decision (FID) for a new production facility. SAFc Connect represents a next evolution of SABA's commitment to aggregate demand and connect SAF suppliers with buyers seeking to invest in decarbonized aviation.

With today’s go-live, both buyers and providers stand to benefit. Upon logging in, SAFc buyers can view posted offers all in one place, with each offer vetted by SABA and accompanied by key details such as carbon intensity performance, sustainability certification standard, pricing, feedstock, fuel type, and term length. User-level permissions ensure that only authorized SAFc buyers can view sustainability and commercial information associated with the offers, which are subject to strict confidentiality requirements. After reviewing available offers, buyers can then contact providers to complete offtake discussions.

Participating SAFc providers gain access to a committed community of buyers who want to make near-term purchases to meet their ambitious climate targets. The platform will be updated on a recurring basis with additional platform participation and offer volumes. The enhanced flexibility and responsiveness built into the system is expected to encourage new SAF production and capture long term pricing benefits associated with economies of scale.

SAFc Connect will leverage SABA's existing book and claim model that separates SAF's environmental benefits from the physical fuel and captures them as a SAFc. Purchasing SAF certificates allows corporate travelers to invest in SAF and capture the environmental benefits, even if the fuel does not flow directly into the planes they fly on. The travelers' investment allows them to make a greenhouse gas emissions reduction claim on their climate disclosures, while the physical SAF flows to an aircraft operator.

SAFc Connect will only host offers for SAF that meets SABA's world-leading sustainability criteria.

Buyer participation in SAFc Connect is offered exclusively to SABA members. For organizations interested in learning more about SABA membership, email [email protected]. For SAF providers looking to post volumes to SAFc Connect, email [email protected] to learn more.

About SABA

The Sustainable Aviation Buyers Alliance (SABA) is a joint initiative of RMI and Environmental Defense Fund, with expert support from the Center for Green Market Activation, focused on accelerating the path to net-zero aviation by driving investment in, and adoption of, high-integrity sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and supporting companies, airlines, and freight customers in achieving their climate goals.

More information on SABA can be found at www.flysaba.org