NATO representative warns Europe must boost aviation fuel production to ensure military readiness

A senior NATO energy official has urged European countries to urgently increase aviation fuel production and infrastructure investment, warning that current trends in transport electrification could threaten the alliance’s military capabilities in a potential conflict.

Julian Wieczorkiewiczius, co-chair of NATO’s Operational Energy Committee, told the alliance’s Parliamentary Assembly in Vilnius on Saturday that aviation fuel would become critical under NATO’s “single fuel policy” in wartime, ensuring streamlined logistics for both air and ground operations.

“If war breaks out, we will switch to using aviation fuel for everything—both flying and ground movement. This keeps logistics simple,” Wieczorkiewiczius said. “Otherwise, you’d need separate supply chains for aviation and ground forces, which we want to avoid.”

The official highlighted that Europe’s shift toward electric vehicles risks shrinking its refining capacity by 40–80% over 25 years, as demand for diesel and gasoline declines. Without these products, refineries—unable to operate on aviation fuel alone—may exit the European market, leaving the continent vulnerable.

“Refineries have told us: long-term, Europe lacks a viable business case. Other regions like Africa and Southeast Asia will be more attractive,” he warned, calling this a “serious problem for deterrence and defense.”

Wieczorkiewiczius noted that aviation and defense sectors cannot easily electrify, leaving them dependent on traditional fuels. While sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) offer alternatives, he cautioned that biofuel feedstocks—some imported from China—pose strategic risks, and synthetic fuels require massive, costly electricity inputs.

To address the challenge, he urged European governments to:

• Invest in fuel infrastructure, even if commercially unviable, to ensure wartime readiness.
• Use legal and trade tools to block fuel imports from nations enabling Russian aggression.
• Subsidize sustainable fuel production and innovation.
• Leverage EU funds for dual-use infrastructure (e.g., pipelines serving civilian airports in peacetime and military needs in wartime).
• Strengthen cooperation between transport and defense ministers to align military requirements.

“You can spend money maintaining empty pipelines waiting for war, or you can supply civilian airports in peacetime to keep the system running,” he said.