As South Korea’s 2027 deadline for mandatory use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) in all commercial flights approaches, major refiners are ramping up production while urging government support for early infrastructure investment.

According to the roadmap released by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, airlines must blend at least 1% SAF into jet fuel supplied to outbound international flights starting in 2027. The ratio will rise to 3% by 2030 and reach 7–10% by 2035.

Refiners including SK Energy, GS Caltex, S-Oil, and HD Hyundai Oilbank are expanding capacity mainly through co-processing—mixing bio-based feedstock into existing refinery systems—but this method yields only around 10% SAF.

SK Energy invested USD 10.6 million in its Ulsan facility, exported SAF to Europe in January, and signed a supply agreement with Cathay Pacific in March.