Manchester Airport first in UK to get direct sustainable fuel supply

Manchester Airport is to become the first in the UK to have a direct supply of sustainable fuel for its planes.

It'll be delivered to the airport through existing underground pipes, from a new refinery being developed at Stanlow.

It is hoped by 2026, 10% of fuel being used for flights from Manchester will be sustainable, which will help airlines operating from the airport become more carbon friendly.

Fulcrum is developing a new biorefinery at Stanlow in Cheshire which will recycle waste which would have gone to landfill into sustainable aviation fuel.

The fuel will be supplied to Manchester Airport through a pipeline which already runs between Stanlow and the airport.

Neil Robinson, Manchester Airport Group CSR and Airspace Change Directors said: "The introduction of Sustainable Aviation Fuel is testament to the innovation we have seen, and the collaboration between airports, airlines, the Government and suppliers like Fulcrum to achieve real progress towards our goal of Net Zero for UK aviation by 2050."

The new biorefinery, which will be called Fulcrum NorthPoint, is part of wider plans to establish the North West as the leading producer of sustainable aviation fuel in the UK.

It will produce approximately 100 million litres of sustainable aviation fuel per year, which when blended 50/50 with traditional jet fuel, could fill the fuel tanks of approximately 1,200 Boeing 777-300s.

The fuel produced will have a CO2 footprint at least 70% lower than that of its traditional jet fuel equivalent. The development will also create up to 1,520 jobs.

Manchester Airport Group has already become the first airport group in the UK to be certified as carbon neutral in 2016.

The announcement about the partnership with Fulcrum also follows the announcement last year of a competition to offer five years free landing to the first zero emission flight from one of its airports.