Petrobras pilots Cardano to curb SAF carbon double-counting

Petrobras is piloting a Cardano-based system that uses CS-SAF tokens to record sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) environmental attributes and link each claim to the original fuel certificate. A case study published Sept. 30 describes the pilot, developed by Petrobras’ research arm in collaboration with PUC-Rio University’s Ledger Labs and the Cardano Foundation.

The platform represents SAF environmental benefits as standardized digital tokens on the Cardano blockchain. Tokens can be issued, transferred, inspected and retired. Retirement of a CS-SAF token prevents reuse and connects the claimed benefit back to the underlying SAF certificate. The tokens carry metadata aligned with CORSIA, the international aviation carbon-offsetting framework, so recorded attributes correspond to recognized reporting standards. Transfer and retirement records are stored on the ledger for auditing.

The project uses a book-and-claim model that separates the physical fuel from the environmental claim. Under the system, an airline, a company or an individual can receive an environmental benefit even when the physical SAF is produced or used elsewhere. A traveler can enter departure and destination airports, calculate a CS-SAF allocation for the route and receive a certificate that lists route distance and the allocated benefit; that certificate remains linked in the ledger to the underlying fuel documentation.

Petrobras and PUC-Rio also developed a Diesel R prototype that proposes checkpoints across fuel production, transport and use to create a continuous lifecycle record. The Diesel R model is presented as a way to connect data held by suppliers and logistics providers and to support Scope 3 reporting, which covers indirect emissions across a company’s value chain.

The case study does not include transaction volumes, revenue figures or a timetable for broader deployment. The Cardano Foundation and Petrobras did not disclose commercial metrics for the pilot, so financial scale and market uptake have not been reported.

Industry guidance referenced in the case study notes that book-and-claim arrangements do not change the physical fuel used or its direct emissions. The Roundtable on Sustainable Biomaterials recommends that buyers who support reductions via book-and-claim disclose those supported reductions separately from their operational emissions. Multiple participants in a fuel value chain may make distinct claims provided their disclosures do not misrepresent total emission reductions.

Petrobras is Brazil’s state-controlled energy company and one of the country’s largest fuel producers. The case study frames the platform as research and development rather than a commercial product rollout and does not provide information on wider use across aviation or other fuel markets.