Cosmo Oil Partners with Shimonoseki to Turn Used Cooking Oil into SAF

Japan’s Cosmo Oil has signed an agreement with the city of Shimonoseki to collect used cooking oil (UCO) from households and businesses and convert it into Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). The initiative is part of a broader effort to build a domestic low-carbon aviation fuel supply chain as global SAF demand accelerates.

Under the agreement, the city will oversee collection, while industry partners process the feedstock into SAF. The fuel will be refined at facilities operated by Saffaire Sky Energy and distributed through Cosmo Oil Marketing. Collection began on February 2 and is expected to expand to supermarkets and community centers.

Cosmo began supplying domestically produced SAF in 2025 from its Sakai refinery near Osaka, with annual output of about 30,000 kiloliters. Japan aims to replace roughly 10% of conventional jet fuel with SAF by 2030, reflecting growing regulatory and investor pressure on airlines to cut emissions.