How BBVA’s US$1.5bn Deal Backs Aviation’s SAF Goals

Decarbonisation in the aviation sector is especially challenging, as innovative, environmentally friendly technologies are more difficult to scale than traditional methods.

Because heavy batteries make electrified long-haul flights uneconomical, the focus has shifted to developing clean-burning fuels, especially Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAFs).

A major barrier to developing these fuels is limited funding and slow policy adoption.

To address this, BBVA has arranged a US$1.5bn financing package for Acelen Renováveis, a Brazilian renewable fuels developer and part of the Mubadala Capital group.

This capital will fund a renewable fuels plant in Brazil, representing significant progress in SAF and Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) production in the region.

“Beyond its scale, the project reinforces SAF as a key lever for the decarbonisation of air transport and helps position Brazil as a market with significant potential in sustainable fuels”, says Carlos López Rabadán, Managing Director at BBVA responsible for Project Finance in South America.

“Our participation underscores the bank’s ability to structure highly complex financial solutions and to support our clients in projects with long-term impact.”

Complex capital for global impact

For this transaction, BBVA led a joint financing structure involving international commercial banks and development finance institutions, including HSBC and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a World Bank Group institution.

Using a blended finance framework, the bank combined financial instruments to manage risks linked to large-scale infrastructure projects.

This coordination between multilateral institutions and commercial lenders reflects a growing trend in sustainable finance: mobilising co-investment for capital-intensive technologies.

“By supporting one of the first SAF facilities in Latin America at this scale, we seek to demonstrate commercial viability, reduce risks, and lay the groundwork for replicable investments in the region,” says Olaf Schmidt, Regional Director for Manufacturing, Agribusiness and Services for Latin America and Europe at IFC.

“The Acelen Renováveis ​​project is an example of how industrial innovation and sustainable development—including, significantly, in the agribusiness sector—can mutually reinforce each other, generating quality jobs, strengthening agricultural value chains, and accelerating Brazil’s transition to a more resilient economy.”

Strategic infrastructure and market expansion

With this funding, Acelen Renováveis will build a plant with an estimated daily capacity of 20,000 barrels of SAF and HVO. The biorefinery will be located on an existing industrial site in Bahia, northeast Brazil, and is expected to create up to 3,600 direct and indirect jobs.

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Acelen Renováveis plans to cultivate 1,440 square kilometres of degraded land, allocating 20% to partnerships with family farms and small producers. “This model seeks to combine productive regeneration, social inclusion, and decarbonization, aligned with global best practices in sustainability and low-carbon development,” the company says.

“The structuring of this financing confirms the technical, financial, and socio-environmental robustness of the project. We are now entering a new phase of large-scale industrial execution,” says Luiz de Mendonça, CEO of Acelen Renováveis.

“BBVA has been a key strategic partner in structuring and enabling this financing, demonstrating deep commitment to the project and to the advancement of sustainable finance. Together, we are advancing one of the most relevant initiatives for the future of aviation and contributing meaningfully to the acceleration of the global energy transition.”

The plant's output will primarily serve European and United States markets, where regulatory frameworks and corporate demand for SAF are rapidly increasing.

Brazil is emerging as a key hub for sustainable fuels, and this transaction further integrates it into the global green supply chain.

“This operation reinforces our commitment to supporting clients and partners in the energy transition, connecting global financing to transformational projects with long-term economic, social, and environmental impact,” says Alexandre Guião, CEO of HSBC Brazil.

Diversification into next-gen cleantech

This deal marks BBVA’s first global transaction in the SAF segment.

As financial institutions face growing pressure to align with net-zero goals, banks are moving from general green bonds to targeted, technology-driven project finance.

“This transaction represents a significant step for BBVA in advancing its commitment to the energy transition within an emerging market such as SAF,” adds Carlos.