Pilatus and Synhelion are about to launch a strategic cooperation with the aim of accelerating the scale-up of solar fuels for the aviation industry. Pilatus intends to use Synhelion’s solar fuels for its own operations and also offer them to its own customers in the medium term. With this in mind, Pilatus has become a shareholder in Synhelion, reinforcing its commitment to the proactive defossilization of air traffic.
Synhelion was founded in 2016 as a spin-off from ETH Zurich. The company aims to replace fossil fuels with renewable solar fuels, thereby helping to decarbonize the travel industry.
Pilatus aircraft are already certified to use sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), which is currently produced mainly from biomass or waste. Recent calculations indicate, however, that this type of fuel will never be available in sufficient quantities, now or in the future.
Synhelion is currently building the world’s first industrial solar fuel production plant in – the construction of a first commercial plant is planned in Spain from 2025. During this process, fuels are produced from solar energy. Pilatus hopes to use Synhelion’s solar fuel for its own aircraft fleet before offering the same fuel to its customers as a proactive means of defossilizing their air travel.
The partnership also sees Pilatus become a shareholder in Synhelion, reinforcing a long-term commitment to the sustainable transformation of air travel.
Hansueli Loosli, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Pilatus, emphasizes: “Pilatus has been committed to sustainability and energy efficiency for many years – in our production processes and new buildings, for example. We are firmly convinced that sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) will be a lasting feature of aviation operations in the future, and this is our way of making an additional essential contribution.”
Markus Bucher, CEO of Pilatus, adds: “We are convinced of the value of solar fuel technology – these fuels are the best way to defossilize air travel as quickly as possible. We are delighted to play a pioneering role together with Synhelion and make an important contribution to sustainability in the aviation industry.”
Philipp Furler, Co-CEO and Co-Founder of Synhelion, comments: “We are extremely proud to have Pilatus as a partner and shareholder. In the coming years, we will fully focus on scaling our fuels worldwide. Together, we aim to launch sustainable solar fuels for the entire Pilatus customer fleet within the next ten years.”
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