Finnair announced last summer that as of early 2019 it will start offering its customers a new service allowing customers to offset the CO2 emissions of their flights by funding emissions reduction projects or carbon sinks, or by supporting the use of biofuels.
Finnair has now selected its first partners for its offset service: For sustainable biofuels, Finnair’s partner will be the Dutch SkyNRG, and for emission reduction projects, Finnair will partner with the Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO), an international financial institution backed by the Nordic states. Finnair will introduce the CO2 offsetting service to its customers in early 2019, and the service can be purchased through Finnair’s website.
“We are very happy to be able to partner with SkyNRG and NEFCO on this important initiative,” says Kati Ihamäki, Director, Corporate Sustainability at Finnair. “We conducted a survey on how our customers view CO2 emission reductions, and biofuels and carbon sinks were the preferred means for reducing CO2 emissions – therefore it was a logical choice for us to start looking into how we could offer these options for our customers.”
Flights flown by Finnair with biofuel will be determined by the uptake of the service by Finnair customers. Biofuel has a reduction potential of 60-80%, compared to conventional jet fuel, but its price is currently three to five times the price of conventional jet fuel.
“Finnair fully supports the industry’s common goal for carbon emission reductions. Advancing the use of biofuel is an important step towards our target, which is carbon neutral growth,” adds Kati Ihamäki.
For emission reductions, Finnair will partner with NEFCO, a financial institution established by Nordic Governments to finance sustainable green growth and climate projects.
Finnair customers will be able to offset the CO2 emissions of their flights by funding an emissions reduction project identified by NEFCO in Mozambique, where efficient cookstoves are taken into use to reduce deforestation and emissions.