The airline Swiss has entered into a cooperation with Synhelion, which will result in the Swiss carrier being the first airline in the world to use so-called solar fuel.

The process developed by Synhelion will in future produce carbon dioxide-neutral kerosene with the help of concentrated sunlight. Swiss and its partner are thus playing a pioneering role in the production and use of sustainable fuels. The cooperation covers the entire Lufthansa Group, but the introduction will first take place at Swiss.

"The collaboration with Synhelion is based on the shared vision of making it possible in the future to fly CO2-neutrally in regular flight operations using solar fuels," says company boss Dieter Vranckx. “We are proud to be the first airline in the world to be able to fly with solar kerosene. By partnering with Synhelion, we are promoting Swiss innovation and actively promoting the development, launch and scaling of this promising sustainable fuel technology.”

Synhelion has developed a key technology for the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from renewable energies. The unique process uses concentrated solar heat to produce synthesis gas, from which kerosene is then synthesized in standard industrial processes. Such a sun-to-liquid fuel closes the CO2 cycle, since it only releases as much CO2 when it is burned as was previously used for its production. This is an important contribution to effectively decarbonizing air traffic.

This year, Synhelion will build the world's first plant for the industrial production of solar fuels in Jülich (D). SWISS is to become the first buyer of the solar kerosene produced in 2023. The agreed partnership further includes support from SWISS and the Lufthansa Group in the development of Synhelion's proposed commercial fuel facility in Spain.

A partnership has existed between the Swiss pioneer Synhelion, Swiss, Edelweiss and the Lufthansa Group since 2020. This aims to make a contribution to reducing CO2 emissions from Swiss aviation through solar fuel.