Nandina REM Launches Pioneering Aircraft Recycling Initiative to Boost Aviation Sustainability

Singapore-based start-up Nandina REM has launched an innovative aircraft recycling initiative aimed at transforming retired aircraft materials into high-quality, ultra-low-emission, traceable resources for the aviation and automotive industries. This development is part of the company's efforts to promote sustainability by reusing these materials in new aircraft and products such as electric vehicle battery casings.

The company is leveraging its partnerships with global trading houses like Sumitomo and aluminium leaders such as Press Metal, utilizing advanced technology and material science to maintain the quality of aluminium alloys. By supplying high-grade secondary aluminium to manufacturers, Nandina REM is helping reduce reliance on primary aluminium, significantly cutting down energy consumption and carbon emissions.

"We see retired aeroplanes as a treasure trove of valuable materials. We believe that high-quality, recovered materials such as aluminium can become the building blocks of a greener, more sustainable future," said Karina Cady, Founder and CEO of Nandina REM.

The aviation industry, which contributed 2% of global energy-related CO2 emissions in 2022, faces significant challenges in reducing its environmental footprint. Given that reducing air travel is not seen as a practical solution, Nandina REM aims to address the problem by reducing the carbon intensity of aircraft through the use of recycled materials, achieving a carbon intensity reduction of over 50%.

Nandina REM's approach to sustainability is built on three key pillars:

Sourcing Retired Aircraft: The company plans to reprocess around 40 retired aircraft in 2024, with plans to double this figure in the coming years. This will provide a steady supply chain for secondary aluminium.

Certification: Working closely with industry stakeholders and policymakers, Nandina REM ensures that recycled aluminium meets the aviation industry's stringent standards for decarbonisation. The company is committed to establishing secondary aluminium as a vital part of building greener aircraft.

Reducing Emissions: Nandina REM's ambitious long-term target is to cut one gigatonne of greenhouse gas emissions from industrial supply chains by 2030. While ambitious, CEO Karina Cady remains confident in the feasibility of this goal.

Nandina REM is also a founding member of the Aviation Circularity Consortium (ACC), which aims to foster a circular economy within the aviation sector. Collaboration is a key focus for the company, as highlighted by Cady: "In the same way that a geologist looks at a mountain for minerals, we want engineers to see retired planes as resources for circular materials that can be harvested."

One of ACC's key initiatives is the development of structured financing products to eliminate the "green premium" that manufacturers often face when adopting sustainable materials. By reducing costs and improving efficiency, Nandina REM aims to make recycled materials the obvious choice for industrial supply chains, turning sustainability into a simple business decision.