Lufthansa Group introduces environmental surcharge to cover SAF and emissions regulations – GreenAir News

The Lufthansa Group has introduced an environmental surcharge on all tickets issued from June 26 with departures from January 1, 2025 on flights from the 27 EU countries, as well as from the United Kingdom, Norway and Switzerland. The surcharge ranges from €1 to €72 ($1.08-$78), depending on the flight route. It is intended to partially cover “the constantly increasing additional costs resulting from regulatory environmental requirements.” In particular, Lufthansa cites the impact of the statutory blending quota for sustainable aviation fuel ReFuelEU, which is to be introduced for departures from EU countries from January next year, the alignment with the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) and the costs of the Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA). Luis Gallego, chief executive of International Airlines Group (IAG), which owns British Airways, Iberia, Aer Lingus and other European carriers, told The Times that EU-imposed net zero emissions targets and the move to SAF would push up airfares and have a big impact on demand.

In a statement, the Lufthansa Group said it invests “billions of dollars in new technologies every year” and works with partners on innovations to help make flying more sustainable, and has actively supported global climate and weather research for many years.

“However, the aviation group will not be able to bear the gradually increasing additional costs resulting from regulatory requirements in the coming years on its own,” it said.

The EU SAF blending quota starts at 2% from 2025, 6% from 2030, 20% from 2035 and 70% from 2050. “For the Lufthansa Group, this will result in additional costs of billions in the future,” said the group, which includes Lufthansa, SWISS, Austrian Airlines, Brussels Airlines and Eurowings.

In 2023, SAF accounted for around 0.2% of the group’s total fuel requirements, making the company one of the largest SAF customers globally.

According to The Times, IAG’s Gallego said the costs of complying with “demanding” EU targets could make European airlines less competitive, and decarbonisation should be carried out in a globally consistent way that does not threaten European aviation.

IATA Director General Willie Walsh has already warned that the premium on SAF costs will lead to higher airfares. During its recent annual general meeting in Dubai, IATA said SAF production could increase to meet 0.53% of global jet fuel demand in 2024 at a cost of $3.75 billion to airlines, an additional $2.4 billion over the cost of buying the same amount of conventional jet fuel. It estimated that CORSIA-related costs would add another $600 million in 2024.

Photo: Lufthansa Group