Norway set to make airlines use biofuel

Jet planes in Norway will soon be putting a little vegetable oil in their tank.

From next year any airliner filling up there will have to take gasoline blended with point five percent biofuel.

The government hopes it will cut CO2 emissions and stimulate demand for the greener gas.

But biofuel is currently about four times more expensive than the regular stuff.

Which could mean higher ticket prices for travellers.

Rickard Gustafsson is boss of Scandinavian airline SAS:

(SOUNDBITE)(English) SAS CEO, RICKARD GUSTAFSSON, SAYING:

"So initially there will be a cost in this transformation and exactly how that will play out time will tell. We know that we need to transform towards a more sustainable future and of course carriers will try to get, you know, push that cost into the market but at the end of the day the market will determine the willingness to pay. So time will tell."

SAS expects the new rule to add more than 3 million dollars to its annual fuel costs.

But it still aims to run all its domestic flights on biofuel by 2030.

Sweden and Finland are also considering following Norway's lead.

The question is whether that would see demand outstrip supply, and drive prices higher again.

Passengers Reuters spoke to didn't seem worried:

(SOUNDBITE)(English) PASSENGER, PHYSICIAN NIELS KIRKHUS FROM NORWAY, SAYING:

"The costs on flights have come very much down so it wouldn't be that important to the consumers."

Norway is a wealthy place though.

In countries where money is more tight, higher ticket prices could be a tougher sell.