Petrobras, Brazil's state-controlled oil company, has developed two blockchain applications on the Cardano network to track sustainability data for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and its Diesel R renewable diesel, according to a Wednesday announcement from the Cardano Foundation reported by Cointelegraph and CoinDesk. CoinDesk dated the announcement to Sept. 30, 2026. One application tokenizes environmental attributes associated with SAF to prevent the same claim from being used more than once; the other creates a record of Diesel R's production, transportation and use to support emissions reporting. Both outlets report the projects remain at the research stage, and the announcement disclosed neither the fuel volumes covered nor a timeline for broader deployment.
Petrobras and Cardano Foundation announce two blockchain research projects for fuel traceability
Petrobras, Brazil's state-controlled oil company, has developed two blockchain applications on the Cardano network to track sustainability data for sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and its Diesel R renewable diesel, according to a Wednesday announcement from the Cardano Foundation reported by Cointelegraph and CoinDesk. CoinDesk dated the announcement to Sept. 30, 2026. One application tokenizes environmental attributes associated with SAF to prevent the same claim from being used more than once; the other creates a record of Diesel R's production, transportation and use to support emissions reporting. Both outlets report the projects remain at the research stage, and the announcement disclosed neither the fuel volumes covered nor a timeline for broader deployment.
The SAF application uses a Book-and-Claim model, which separates the environmental benefit from the physical fuel and assigns it to an airline, company or passenger even if the fuel is used elsewhere, according to Cointelegraph. Cointelegraph reported that the application was developed with PUC-Rio's Ledger Labs and issues tokens known as CS-SAF containing metadata aligned with the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA). Both outlets reported that passengers can claim the benefit through an application and receive a certificate: Cointelegraph said the certificate is tied to their journey and associated environmental claim, while CoinDesk said a passenger can enter departure and destination airports, calculate the corresponding fuel benefit and receive a certificate linking their allocation back to the original fuel certificate.
CoinDesk described sustainable aviation fuel as a lower-carbon alternative to conventional jet fuel that can be used in existing aircraft and airports, and described Diesel R as Petrobras' diesel made partly from renewable materials such as vegetable oils or animal fats. Cointelegraph reported the Diesel R application creates digital checkpoints tracking production, transportation and use, and that the data could support Scope 3 reporting, which covers indirect emissions across a company's value chain. CoinDesk likewise reported the diesel project would join records from each stage into a history of the fuel's journey and could help companies report Scope 3 emissions, and described the diesel model as proposed.
According to Cointelegraph, the projects are part of an ongoing research and development collaboration that began in 2023 with blockchain education for Petrobras employees and expanded in 2025 to energy-sector research with PUC-Rio's Ledger Labs.
Cointelegraph noted other uses of blockchain in sustainable aviation fuel tracking, including Shell's Avelia, a Book-and-Claim platform launched in 2022. Cointelegraph reported that a September update from Shell said Avelia had contributed to more than 84 million gallons of SAF entering the global fuel network since its launch in 2022, resulting in more than 780,000 tonnes of CO₂e abatement through June 2026. Cointelegraph also reported that Australia's Viva Energy signed an agreement with NoviqTech in January to research digital Book-and-Claim systems for sustainable aviation fuel, including how blockchain could support emissions reporting and track environmental claims.
CoinDesk reported that Cardano joined x402 this month, a payment standard that lets apps and AI agents pay for data or computing services as they request them, and that its initial payment-processing software had been tested on Cardano's pre-production network, with commercial use on the live blockchain still to be demonstrated. CoinDesk also reported that Fireblocks is adding support for Cardano Native Tokens.
Where sources differ
- CoinDesk characterises the two efforts as research projects that Petrobras is testing, and says the diesel model is 'described as proposed'; Cointelegraph says Petrobras 'has developed two blockchain applications using Cardano' and describes the diesel tool as an application that creates digital checkpoints.
- CoinDesk dates the announcement to Sept. 30, 2026, while Cointelegraph does not give a date and describes it only as a Wednesday announcement.
- Neither source reports any fuel volumes covered by the two applications.
- Neither source reports a timeline for broader deployment beyond the research stage.
- Neither source establishes whether Petrobras itself commented on or confirmed the projects; no Petrobras statement or spokesperson response appears in either source.
- Neither source reports the cost, budget or number of participants involved in the projects.
- Neither source establishes whether the CS-SAF tokens or CORSIA-aligned metadata have been independently verified or recognised by any aviation regulator or certification body.
- Neither source establishes whether the Diesel R tracking model has moved beyond a proposed design.
- Neither source reports whether the applications have processed live data or been audited by independent third parties.
- Cointelegraph — original — by Cointelegraph by Nate Kostar
- CoinDesk — by Shaurya Malwa
Read the original at Cointelegraph