Air traffic increased significantly in Spain last year following the reopening of tourism, which in turn increased airlines’ CO2 emissions. According to the consultancy Global Factor, air transport was the sector that increased its emissions the most in Spain, with a doubling of CO2 emissions to 6.96 million tons. To address the need to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, the main players in the Spanish aviation sector have created the Alliance for Air Transport Sustainability. The alliance is led by Airbus and Boeing, together with all Spanish airlines, which participate directly or through their associations, as well as the Association of Oil Operators.
The alliance will focus on three working groups, including operations, fossil fuels, and regulatory and market issues. The main objective of the Alliance is to reduce emissions from the sector, and to this end, the transformation of the current model is fundamental, especially with regard to the use of sustainable aviation fuels, known as SAF. The goal is that, by 2050, 63% of the fuel consumed by commercial aviation will be sustainable, according to the European ReFuelEU Aviation Regulation. By 2025, the target will be 2%. However, the production capacity of these fuels is still not keeping up with demand, which represents a hurdle for the sector.
The president of the Association of Airlines (ALA) has emphasized that climate change is the real competitor in the airline industry and highlighted the key role that sustainable fuels will play in reducing emissions. Although PBSs are three to four times more expensive than kerosene, the mainstream commercial aviation fuel, the association believes that production incentives can reduce the price differential. Production of UAS also needs to scale up significantly to reach the 2050 net-zero emissions target. According to IATA data, 300 million liters of sustainable fuels were produced last year, but 449 billion liters are needed to reach the target. In short, the Alliance for Sustainable Air Transport seeks to boost the manufacture and consumption of sustainable fuels to reduce the sector’s CO2 emissions and meet the targets set for 2025 and 2050.