Jakarta, INTI - Rolls-Royce SMR, a small modular reactor developer by Rolls-Royce, and Equilibrion, a nuclear consultancy and project developer, announced that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) aimed at assessing the technical and economic feasibility of producing sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) using small modular nuclear reactors (SMR).
SAF is one of the key tools to reduce carbon in the aviation industry because it is generally produced with resources like waste oils and agricultural residues.
Both Companies Will Combine Their Technologies
However, from a report by the International Air Transport Association (IATA), SAF only accounted for 0.6% of airlines’ total fuel consumption even though the fuel production had nearly doubled in 2025. Efforts to significantly increase SAF production are challenging due to high initial costs and feedstock issues.
With this collaboration, Rolls-Royce SMR and Equilibrion said they will combine their respective expertise in SMR and SAF production technologies. They will evaluate the potential of SMR-powered fuel plants to produce synthetic aviation fuel on a bigger scale.
Equilibrion’s proprietary modular system, Eq.flight, produces SAF at a commercial scale with lower lifecycle emissions than other alternative technologies. This system will be applied to produce e-SAF using electricity and heat. As for Rolls-Royce, it will share its expertise in SMR technology, designed to generate low-carbon electricity with high reliability and flexible deployment.
“Our SMR technology is designed to provide clean, affordable, and dependable low‑carbon energy, exactly the qualities required to unlock large‑scale Sustainable Aviation Fuel production,” says Alan Woods, Director of Strategy and Business Development for Rolls-Royce SMR.
The Collaboration Can Potentially Produce Millions of Liters of SAF
With the companies’ technologies, each SMR will have the potential to produce more than 160 million liters of SAF per year. This volume will meet around a third of the UK’s target to have power-to-liquids SAF reach 3.5% of the total jet fuel supply by 2040.
Caroline Longman, Director at Equilibrion, said that aviation needs SAF in large volumes to fulfill the industry’s climate goals, and the production of nuclear-powered SAF will generate around 10,000 skilled local jobs.
“Aviation will only meet its climate commitments if SAF becomes available in large, dependable volumes. Nuclear-derived fuel production offers the reliability, scalability, and low-carbon intensity needed to deliver that future. Delivering nuclear-enabled SAF also creates long-term, high-quality employment—each Eq.flight facility has the potential to generate around 10,000 skilled local jobs over its lifetime,” said Longman.
Conclusion
Rolls-Royce SMR and Equilibrion are exploring the use of small modular nuclear reactors to power large-scale production of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF). The collaboration aims to overcome current supply and cost challenges in the aviation sector. If implemented, the collaboration could significantly increase low-carbon fuel supply while supporting climate targets and creating thousands of skilled jobs.
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