Cathay Pacific said the Hong Kong government needs to push for greater use of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) in the region in order to meet its climate goals.
The company's general manager of sustainability Grace Cheung, according to South China Morning Post, said: “Regulators have a key role to play for a level playing field, so that every [player] is doing the right thing for society.
"If we leave it to the market, every company will wait for their competitors to make the first move."
The company launched its corporate SAF programme in 2022 to accelerate the use of SAF with financial support from corporate customers. It said on November 4, 2024, that it brought onboard new global partners, bringing the total to 15 partners.
In addition, the programme has introduced a tiered structure, which will allow customers to participate based on their SAF demand and business model.
“Cathay is excited to welcome DB Schenker, the biggest contributor to the programme to date, and Kuehne+Nagel as diamond partners, EQT as a gold partner, and Julius Baer and Lenton Group as silver partners, bringing the total to 15 partners this year,” the company read in a release.
“Our Corporate SAF Programme has now entered into its third year and keeps expanding," said Cathay Group CEO Ronald Lam. “The programme is a key pillar in Cathay’s overall approach to leading the aviation industry’s decarbonisation. With growing support from our corporate travel and cargo customers, Cathay continues to increase SAF usage across our network worldwide.”
The programme partners have collectively committed to using 2,650 tonnes of SAF in 2024. The company said this is equivalent to a reduction of around 8,060 tonnes of carbon emissions, tripling over the reduction the programme had achieved last year.