British Airways, part of International Airlines Group – a Corporate Partner of the FTE Digital, Innovation & Startup Hub – has signed a deal to purchase more than £9 million worth of innovative carbon removals credits in the UK and overseas as part of a six-year agreement. The deal is part of an ambitious drive to accelerate the airline’s climate change efforts between now and 2030.
One ground-breaking scheme in Scotland will see CO2 emissions captured from whisky distilleries and repurposed into building materials. Another, spread across multiple locations in the UK, uses an enhanced rock weathering technique to lock away carbon for thousands of years. The airline will also purchase carbon removals credits from two companies specialising in high-durability reforestation projects, increasing the amount of forested land in Scotland and Wales.
The airline’s portfolio also includes Canadian carbon capture projects, which focus on carbon removal from rivers and oceans using alkaline rock particles, while in India, the airline is backing a biochar project that empowers female farmers while enhancing soil biodiversity and farm yields.
“As we approach the halfway point in this critical decade of action, we’re sharpening our focus on delivering real, tangible progress by 2030,” said Carrie Harris, Director of Sustainability, British Airways. “We know flying has a significant impact on the planet, and achieving net zero by 2050 requires bold, innovative action today, as well as long-term transformation, and our latest investments in carbon removals reflects this commitment. While small in comparison to our total emissions, these projects are crucial in stimulating the carbon removals market. By supporting pioneering solutions, we’re not only contributing to immediate progress but also laying the groundwork for the large-scale changes needed to meet our climate goals. There is no pathway to net zero for aviation without carbon removals.”
British Airways joined forces with CUR8, a UK-based company that specialises in sourcing high quality carbon removals credits. The airline has purchased 33,000 tonnes of carbon removal credits through its CUR8 portfolio, a small but important step to help scale-up and advance this critical sector. Carbon removals are recognised by scientists, governments and regulators as a vital tool in helping to address climate change, but the sector needs to be scaled up urgently.
“British Airways understands that carbon removals are not a nice-to-have, but an essential part of the aviation sector’s net zero journey,” said Marta Krupinska, CEO, CUR8. “We’ve been proud to partner with this aviation leader to build a portfolio that combines the best of nature and human engineering, stretching from UK soils to the oceans and rivers of Canada. At CUR8, we bring together the world’s leading scientists and climate software to help organisations source and manage carbon removals to help de-risk their net zero future. British Airways is a leading brand that recognises that with this early investment, it can help to make an impact not only for themselves but for the industry at large.”
Hear more from British Airways at FTE Global – the “CES of Aviation” taking place in Los Angeles on 28-30 October 2024. William Rumsey, Head of Product – Airport & Customer Ops, British Airways and Sarah Bennett, Head of Heathrow Safety and Security, British Airways, are participating in a session focused on ‘How do we leverage technology, innovation and new approaches to create Smart Ramp operations around the world?’ They will deliver a joint presentation titled ‘IAG are making extensive efforts to drive automated operations across their network as fast as they can and the ramp is a particular area of focus. What have been the key learnings from this effort so far, and what does it want to see from industry stakeholders going forward to help accelerate progress?’
Meanwhile, Rumsey is also participating in the ‘Digital Identity & Biometrics Symposium – Building compelling business cases for a global industry roll-out’.
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