SWISS is expanding its customers’ carbon offset options for their air travel activities by integrating the Lufthansa Innovation Hub’s “Compensaid” platform into its reservations portal. As a result, SWISS travelers can now reduce their carbon emissions by purchasing sustainable alternative fuel. They can also continue to offset their emissions by contributing to long-term SWISS partner myclimate, which invests in climate protection projects. Compensaid thus gives customers a choice of approaches (which can also be combined) for reducing the environmental impact of their air travel in carbon emissions terms.
Following a successful trial phase, the “Compensaid” platform developed by the Lufthansa Innovation Hub is to become SWISS and Lufthansa’s prime carbon offsetting option. SWISS customers will now find Compensaid directly in the SWISS.COM reservations portal. Compensaid enables travellers to reduce the volumes of carbon dioxide (CO2) generated by their air travel by paying for the use of sustainable alternative fuel. They can also still offset their (remaining) emissions by contributing to the Swiss-based myclimate foundation, which uses the money it receives to finance high-quality climate protection projects.
“The use of synthetic fuels is one of the most promising options for making air travel climate-neutral in the longer term,” says SWISS Chief Executive Officer Thomas Klühr. “And I am delighted that, in Compensaid, we are providing the first global online platform of its kind to further support and promote the use of such alternative fuel in the air transport sector.”
The industry-wide use of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) has been thwarted to date by the volumes available and the high costs of producing them. Only a few refineries in the world are currently capable of manufacturing SAF to the certified standards required and in sufficient quantities.
Compensaid works closely with myclimate
Compensaid offers two options for minimizing the environmental impact of an individual’s air travel. First, the customer can opt for SAF to be used instead of fossil fuel. The platform will calculate the difference in price between the SAF and the fossil fuel required for their air journey. The customer will then pay this amount; and within the following six months, the Lufthansa Group’s Fuel Management unit will feed the equivalent volume of SAF into the Group’s flight operations.
As a second option, customers can continue to offset the carbon emissions generated by their air travel via the Swiss-based myclimate foundation, which has been a partner of the Lufthansa Group since 2007 and which promotes effective climate protection by supporting high-quality environmental projects in developing countries and emerging economies.
Compensaid thus gives the customer a choice of approaches for minimizing the environmental impact of their air travel in carbon emissions terms. The options can also be combined. “Reducing global CO2 emissions requires action at various levels,” says myclimate media spokesman Kai Landwehr. “So we welcome the fact that, in addition to voluntarily offsetting their carbon emissions, SWISS customers can now also help to reduce such emissions right at the source.”
SWISS working steadily to reduce its carbon emissions.
