GERMANY's lufthansa Cargo and Swiss WorldCargo have announced they will begin to include the cost of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) in their Airfreight Surcharge (ASC), reports London's Air Cargo News.
The two cargo businesses said that starting on January 1, they would include a SAF blending quota of an initial two per cent for departure from European Union (EU) countries.
The move comes after the EU mandated that from 2025, fuel uplift from member state airports must contain at least two per cent SAF as part of the RefuelEU initiative.
The percentage will increase gradually, reaching six per cent by 2030 and 70 per cent by 2050.
The RefuelEU initiative is part of the wider European Commission 'Fit for 55' package to meet the emissions reduction target of 55 per cent by 2030 compared to 1990 levels.
Lufthansa Cargo pointed out that other countries were also planning to implement similar requirements.
'The Indian government, for example, is working on a mandatory quota of 1-5 per cent from 2027,' the airline said.
'Singapore is requiring airlines to add one per cent SAF to flights departing from Changi Airport starting in 2026. The target is 3-5 per cent by 2030. By then, the EU will require six per cent and the UK and Japan will require 10 per cent.'
Lufthansa Cargo added that the aviation industry cannot initiate a competitive SAF market on its own and called for support from governments.
'A targeted policy support strategy is required. Significantly more use of SAF is only possible if its supply volumes and availability increase substantially as quickly as possible and the prices fall accordingly,' it said.
'Biogenic SAF is currently available in small quantities and 3-5 times more expensive than fossil fuel. A targeted policy strategy is needed to be able to meet the volumes for the blending rates and beyond.'
The two carriers said that they implemented the ASC in 2015 as a combined surcharge to cover additional costs that cannot be influenced by the individual airlines.
'So far, these have mainly been rising fuel, currency and security prices. The flexible and fair system works as follows: Lufthansa Cargo monitors the development of additional costs using a standardised index calculation system,' Lufthansa said.
SeaNews Turkey
The two cargo businesses said that starting on January 1, they would include a SAF blending quota of an initial two per cent for departure from European Union (EU) countries.
The move comes after the EU mandated that from 2025, fuel uplift from member state airports must contain at least two per cent SAF as part of the RefuelEU initiative.
The percentage will increase gradually, reaching six per cent by 2030 and 70 per cent by 2050.
The RefuelEU initiative is part of the wider European Commission 'Fit for 55' package to meet the emissions reduction target of 55 per cent by 2030 compared to 1990 levels.
Lufthansa Cargo pointed out that other countries were also planning to implement similar requirements.
'The Indian government, for example, is working on a mandatory quota of 1-5 per cent from 2027,' the airline said.
'Singapore is requiring airlines to add one per cent SAF to flights departing from Changi Airport starting in 2026. The target is 3-5 per cent by 2030. By then, the EU will require six per cent and the UK and Japan will require 10 per cent.'
Lufthansa Cargo added that the aviation industry cannot initiate a competitive SAF market on its own and called for support from governments.
'A targeted policy support strategy is required. Significantly more use of SAF is only possible if its supply volumes and availability increase substantially as quickly as possible and the prices fall accordingly,' it said.
'Biogenic SAF is currently available in small quantities and 3-5 times more expensive than fossil fuel. A targeted policy strategy is needed to be able to meet the volumes for the blending rates and beyond.'
The two carriers said that they implemented the ASC in 2015 as a combined surcharge to cover additional costs that cannot be influenced by the individual airlines.
'So far, these have mainly been rising fuel, currency and security prices. The flexible and fair system works as follows: Lufthansa Cargo monitors the development of additional costs using a standardised index calculation system,' Lufthansa said.
SeaNews Turkey
