On January 21, 2026, Yu Feng, President of Greater China at Honeywell International Inc., stated in an interview with China Business Journal that there is a common misconception that green and low-carbon development only delivers social benefits without economic value. In reality, technology conversion has turned used cooking oil (commonly referred to as “gutter oil”) into a critical feedstock for Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), to the point where supply has become extremely tight.

Globally, SAF adoption is accelerating under policy support. The European Union requires all flights departing from EU airports to gradually increase SAF blending ratios, starting from at least 2% in 2025, rising to 6% in 2030, 20% in 2035, and reaching 70% by 2050.

In China, the Civil Aviation Administration’s “14th Five-Year Plan for Green Development of Civil Aviation” targets SAF consumption of 50,000 tons during the planning period.

Despite being a key pathway for aviation decarbonization, SAF remains significantly more expensive than conventional jet fuel. Honeywell notes that the high cost is driven by the early stage of the industry, limited production scale, and lack of economies of scale. In addition, constrained feedstock availability—such as waste oils—and high capital requirements for advanced production technologies further increase overall costs. The company also emphasized that long-term and stable policy support is essential to reduce investment risk and enable market expansion, with global regulatory frameworks still evolving.

Yu Feng explained that Honeywell’s Ecofining™ technology enables the conversion of waste cooking oil into SAF through a specialized refining process, significantly increasing its economic value and making it a highly sought-after resource.

He noted: “In the past, people were concerned about gutter oil re-entering the food chain. Today, that concern is no longer necessary, as it is being transformed into clean aviation fuel. In Europe, SAF prices can reach around $3,000 per ton.”

However, relying solely on waste cooking oil is insufficient to meet future aviation fuel demand. To expand supply and reduce costs, Honeywell is advancing multiple SAF production pathways.

Yu Feng highlighted that with the rapid growth of China’s renewable energy sector, declining green electricity costs enable the production of green hydrogen. Carbon dioxide can then be combined with green hydrogen to produce green methanol (e-methanol), which can be further converted into eSAF using Honeywell’s processes. This pathway offers lower costs compared to similar technologies and significantly expands SAF feedstock options.

He added that carbon capture should not be limited to storage, as storage costs remain high. Instead, captured CO₂ should be combined with green electricity and hydrogen to produce high-value products, enabling circular carbon utilization.

In addition, Honeywell’s ethanol-to-jet fuel technology allows SAF production using corn-based, cellulosic, or sugar-based ethanol, further expanding feedstock availability to meet the rapidly growing global demand for sustainable aviation fuels.