Fuel is considered one of the most expensive aspects of organizing a flight. Fuel price hikes have a significant impact on airlines. Aircraft use 3–3.5 liters of fuel per 100 passengers per kilometer. As a result, in the current market, fuel expenses account for 20–25% of overall costs and can occasionally surpass 30%. The fuel cost highly affects the overall profitability of the company positively or negatively depending on the overall fuel spending. The data published by the Department of Transportation’s Bureau of Transportation Statistics (BTS) in 2023 disclosed fuel cost and consumption figures for US airlines in January 2023, revealing that US scheduled service airlines used 1.413 billion gallons of petroleum. The cost of gasoline per gallon in January 2023 was US$ 3.28, 4.3% more than in December 2022—which was US$ 3.14 and 71.7% higher than in January 2019. Total fuel expenditure in January 2023 reached US$ 4.63 billion, a 70.6% hike from pre-pandemic January 2019. Hence, aviation fuel consumption and volatility in prices are rapidly increasing. Thus, airlines across the globe concentrate on reducing their overall fuel consumption in order to achieve cost optimization.
Based on type, the global aviation fuel card market share is bifurcated into merchant and branded. The merchant segment is dominating the aviation fuel card market, owing to the presence of several third-party fuel card service providers. Based on application, the global aviation fuel card market share is divided into commercial and private. The commercial segment dominated the market due to growing demand from commercial aviation providers with growing air travel across the globe.
By geography, the aviation fuel card market is segmented into North America, Europe, APAC, MEA, and SAM. Shell Plc, BP Plc, Viva Energy Group Ltd., TITAN Aviation Fuels Inc., CSI Enterprises Inc., Total Energies, and EPIC Aviation LLC are among the key market players with significant market share that are profiled in this aviation fuel card market study.
Aviation Fuel Card Market Analysis: Application Overview
Based on application, the aviation fuel card market is bifurcated into commercial and private. In 2022, the commercial segment held the largest share of the market and is expected to hold the largest share during the forecast period. In terms of application, the global aviation fuel card market is divided into commercial and private. Rising air passenger traffic and growing demand for aircraft signify rising demand for commercial aviation. As per the data published by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) in 2023, Asia Pacific airlines witnessed an increase in traffic by 105.8% in July 2023 compared to July 2022, continuing to lead the region, while Latin American airlines increased traffic by 25.3% compared to the same month in 2022. With a huge fleet of flights, fuel consumption also increases. Cost optimization, being one of the primary focuses of these airlines, is driving the demand for fuel cards in commercial aviation applications.
In the private sector, the demand for aviation fuel cards is largely driven by growing private aviation for tourism. As per the report published by the Institute for Policy Studies in May 2023, in the last two decades, the global fleet of private jets has more than doubled, and in 2022, the manufacturing of private jets reached its highest demand. Owing to a larger consumer base in the commercial sector, the demand and consumption of fuel are higher, ultimately leading to an increased adoption of fuel cards.
Aviation Fuel Card Market: Competitive Landscape and Key Developments
Shell Plc, BP Plc, Associated Energy Group LLC, Viva Energy Group Ltd., TITAN Aviation Fuels Inc., CSI Enterprises Inc., Total Energies, EPIC Aviation LLC, Avfuel Corp, and Kropp Holdings Inc are among the key aviation fuel card market players profiled during this study. In addition, several other important aviation fuel card market players have been studied and analyzed during the study to get a holistic view of the aviation fuel card market and its ecosystem.
| Year | News | Country |
| September, 2023 | Viva Energy announced the launch of the Reddy Express brand, which will gradually replace the Coles Express brand across the country and operate alongside the On The Run (OTR) offer as we roll out the store conversions. | APAC |
| October, 2022 | TreviPay, the global B2B payments and invoicing network, announced the launch of TreviPay Aviation Network, powered by KHI, to offer a co-branded, closed-loop card solution tailored to the needs of FBOs (fixed-base operators) and flight support service organizations that service the general and defense aviation industries, and their customers. | North America |