Cathay Pacific Airways has set a new target to reduce its carbon intensity by 12% from 2019 levels by 2030, the airline announced on Monday.
This move is part of Cathay’s commitment to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050 and reinforces its position as a leader in sustainability within the aviation industry.
To reach the new target, Cathay plans to improve its carbon intensity from 761 grams of CO2 per revenue tonne kilometre (gCO2/RTK) to 670 gCO2/RTK by 2030.
The airline will be adding more than 70 new passenger and freighter aircraft to its fleet in the coming years, which can be up to 25% more fuel-efficient compared to the previous generation.
Cathay has also pledged to use Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) to offset 10% of the carbon emissions from employee duty travel on its flights starting from 2024.
Chief Executive Officer Ronald Lam said: “Despite being a major airline with one of the best carbon intensity performances in the world, we are determined to improve our climate performance even further via accelerating the use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), modernising our fleet and driving operational improvements.”
The airline has been offsetting all emissions from employee duty travel on its flights since 2007 through its voluntary carbon offset programme, Fly Greener.
Cathay was one of the first airlines in Asia to set a target of 10% SAF for its total fuel consumption by 2030 and has undertaken a multi-pronged approach to forge strategic partnerships with like-minded organisations and stakeholders along the SAF value chain.
This includes the introduction of Asia’s first major Corporate SAF Programme for corporate customers to reduce their aviation-related indirect emissions and co-initiating the launch of the Hong Kong Sustainable Aviation Fuel Coalition earlier this year.
According to the LSE Transition Pathway Initiative Centre (TPI Centre), Cathay Pacific Airways has been among the top five full-service airlines with the lowest carbon intensity since 2014.
