Brazil’s Petrobras uses Cardano to track sustainable aviation fuel, renewable diesel
Brazilian state-controlled Petrobras has built two blockchain applications on the Cardano network to record sustainability data for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and its renewable Diesel R. One application tokenizes environmental attributes for SAF using a Book-and-Claim model aligned with CORSIA, while the other creates digital checkpoints to trace production, transport and use of Diesel R.
Why It Matters
Linking fuel sustainability claims to blockchain tokens can reduce double-counting and create auditable records for corporate emissions reporting, potentially improving transparency in fuel supply chains. These pilots follow a growing industry trend where energy companies use distributed ledgers to manage environmental attributes for low-carbon fuels.
Key Facts
- Developer: Petrobras (state-controlled oil company) with Cardano Foundation and PUC-Rio’s Ledger Labs
- Network: Cardano
- Applications: Two: one for tokenizing SAF environmental attributes (CS-SAF tokens), one for digital checkpoints for Diesel R
- Model used: Book-and-Claim for SAF
- Standards alignment: CS-SAF token metadata aligned with CORSIA
Petrobras has developed two Cardano-based blockchain applications intended to record and verify sustainability information for low-carbon fuels, the Cardano Foundation said in a Wednesday announcement. The first application, created in collaboration with PUC-Rio’s Ledger Labs, converts environmental attributes tied to sustainable aviation fuel into digital tokens. Those tokens—called CS-SAF—are structured so the environmental benefit can be detached from the physical fuel and assigned separately to an airline, company or passenger via a Book-and-Claim mechanism.
According to the foundation, CS-SAF tokens carry metadata mapped to the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA). The project also includes a passenger-facing option that lets travelers claim CS-SAF tokens and obtain a certificate documenting the environmental claim associated with their journey. The intention is to prevent the same sustainability claim from being used more than once by recording unique tokenized attributes on the blockchain.
The second application focuses on Petrobras’ Diesel R renewable diesel and implements digital checkpoints to capture data across production, transportation and consumption stages. The Cardano Foundation said this recorded data could be used to support Scope 3 emissions reporting, which covers indirect emissions across a company’s value chain. The foundation did not disclose how much fuel these pilots cover or provide a timeline for wider rollout.
These initiatives are part of a research and development collaboration that began in 2023 with blockchain education for Petrobras staff and expanded in 2025 into energy-sector research with PUC-Rio’s Ledger Labs. The announcement situates Petrobras’ pilots within a broader industry pattern: other energy firms, including Shell and Australia’s Viva Energy, have also explored blockchain-enabled Book-and-Claim systems to track SAF attributes and support emissions accounting.
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