Emirates has become the first international airline to join the Aviation Initiative for Renewable Energy in Germany (aireg). The airline announced its membership at the ILA Berlin 2024 during an official signing ceremony, marking a pivotal step in its commitment to enhance the sustainability of its operations and promote the development of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). Through this partnership, Emirates aims to boost the production of locally sourced SAF in Germany, adding to its array of SAF-related endeavors initiated recently.
The agreement with aireg was formalized in Berlin by Volker Greiner, Emirates Vice President North & Central Europe, and Siegfried Knecht, Chairman of the Executive Board of aireg, in the presence of Dr. Anna Christmann, Federal Government Coordinator of German Aerospace Policy.
Sir Tim Clark, Emirates’ President commented on the new partnership with aireg: “We’re very pleased to become a member of aireg, and contribute to Germany’s efforts to build its capacities to become a centre for SAF production. Our industry requires large quantities of sustainable aviation fuel at a commercially viable cost, yet the shortage persists. Ramping up and furthering technologies for the production of SAF requires the partnership and support from multiple stakeholders and we are confident that aireg will lead in this regard.”
Siegfried Knecht, Chairman of the Executive Board of aireg, thankfully acknowledged the partnership between Emirates and aireg: “I am equally humbled and proud to welcome a leader in global aviation in our membership and on behalf of the entire aireg board I very much look forward to a fruitful partnership and cooperation. We need all hands on deck, airlines, airports, OEMs, producers, suppliers, RTOs, startups and of course politics to get us well on track towards net-zero by 2050“.
Germany stands as a crucial market for Emirates, which has been serving German cities and communities since 1987. aireg is dedicated to increasing the production and utilization of regenerative aviation fuels within the country.
Emirates currently operates flights utilizing SAF from cities including Amsterdam, London Heathrow, Paris, Lyon, Oslo, and Singapore.
In the previous year, Emirates partnered with Shell Aviation to integrate SAF into the fuelling systems at Dubai Airport for the first time, allocating it to several flights.
As the world’s largest operator of the A380, Emirates returned to ILA Berlin for the seventh consecutive year. The Emirates A380 was showcased at the airshow for all five days, underscoring the airline’s enduring commitment to Europe’s premier aerospace event. A special flight from Berlin to Dubai on Monday will use blended fuel containing neat SAF, highlighting Emirates’ efforts to minimize its carbon footprint at ILA Berlin 2024
