Thyssenkrupp Industries India, whose majority shares were recently sold by its German parent company, is set to enter the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) sector as part of its new business strategy under Indian ownership. Vivek Bhatia, the managing director, informed ET that the capital goods company is currently in the process of finalizing partnerships for its SAF initiative. SAF is an eco-friendly aviation fuel derived from non-petroleum sources, such as forestry and agricultural waste, used cooking oil, carbon captured from the atmosphere, and green hydrogen.
Thyssenkrupp Industries India, whose German parent recently sold most shares in the company, aims to venture into the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) space, as part of its new business plans under Indian owners.
The capital goods company is "in the process of finalising partners for the SAF venture ," managing director Vivek Bhatia told ET. "We are looking at a short-term horizon.
We want to be active in the market in the next 12-18 months," he said.
Bhatia added his venture will part of "rebranding and reimagining its sugar business into a sugar and biochemicals business". "We want to get into ethanol, bio CNG, lactic acids and polylactic solutions all the way up to SAF. Ultimately, we want to look at sugar-associated biomass in addition to other biomass which can contribute to the green transformation in the industry," said Bhatia.
SAF is an alternative fuel made from non-petroleum feedstocks that reduce emissions from air transportation.
Feedstocks may include forestry and agricultural waste, used cooking oil, carbon captured from the air, and green hydrogen.
While global markets and airlines like Qantas have taken wide leaps in adopting SAF and investing in its production, India is still a nascent player.
The Australian carrier's target is for 10% of its fuel use to come from SAF by 2030 and approximately 60% by 2050.
India is developing a blueprint for SAF adoption, aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said recently.
It plans for 1-5% of commercial flights to use SAF by 2027.
Indian Oil Corporation is planning to set up a joint venture with American clean energy tech company LanzaJet and multiple domestic airlines for production of SAF. The venture will set up a plant to make SAF with alcohol-to-jet technology at IOC 's refinery in Panipat, Haryana at a cost of ₹3,000 crore.
Thyssenkrupp Industries India is an industrial equipment company providing engineering, procurement and construction services for plant engineering projects mainly in the mining, energy and sugar industries.
On May 8, it completed the sale of its industrial business in India.
The majority stake in Thyssenkrupp Industries India, held by German's Thyssenkrupp, was sold to the existing co-shareholders Paharpur Cooling Towers and Protos Engineering Co. Bhatia said the cement business will also be a key focus area for the company going forward.
He said its capex plans on its various business will be decided under the new owners shortly.