EasyJet has signed a Letter of Intent (LoI) with Airbus to support the development of carbon removal technology and explore opportunities for a future supply of carbon removal credits from direct air capture technology.
Direct Air Carbon Capture and Storage (DACCS) is a high-potential technology that captures carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere and then securely stores it underground. This can help counteract carbon emissions from hard to abate sectors, such as aviation, and even address historic carbon emitted in the past that remains in our atmosphere.
EasyJet is among the first airlines in the world to support this nascent technology, which is recognised by climate scientists, including the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), as critical to help the world go beyond climate change mitigation and support the achievement of net-zero targets.
Last year, easyJet joined the UN-backed Race to Zero campaign and committed to achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. The airline has also recently announced its interim carbon reduction target, a 35% carbon emissions intensity improvement by FY2035 on a FY2020 baseline, in line with the Science-Based Targets initiative’s (SBTi) sectoral decarbonisation pathway.
Carbon removal solutions will play a key role in the future to address any residual carbon emissions, while the airline’s ultimate ambition is to achieve zero carbon emission flying. easyJet is working with partners across the industry, including Airbus, Rolls-Royce, GKN Aerospace, Cranfield Aerospace Solutions and Wright Electric, on several dedicated projects to accelerate the development of future zero carbon emission aircraft technology.
The carbon removal certificates will be issued by Airbus’ partner 1PointFive – the licensed US partner of climate solutions company Carbon Engineering. Airbus’ partnership with 1PointFive includes the offtake or removal of 100,000 tonnes of carbon per year over 4 years. As part of the agreement, easyJet has committed to engage in negotiations on the possible pre-purchase of verified and durable carbon removals starting in 2025 through to 2028.
While the aviation industry has taken the initiative to support nascent direct air capture technology, it is essential that governments recognise the contribution of carbon removal solutions to achieve net-zero targets and introduce policy instruments and financial incentives to support negative emissions technologies. These will be critical to making these new technologies viable and successful.
Jane Ashton, easyJet’s Director of Sustainability, said: “Decarbonising a hard to abate sector, such as aviation, is a huge challenge, that no one airline can tackle alone and it’s great to see the industry coming together through Airbus’ initiative.
“We believe that carbon removal solutions will be an essential element of our pathway to net-zero, complementing other components such as sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), which has a similar net impact on carbon reduction, and helping us to neutralise any residual emissions in the future.
“Direct air capture is a nascent technology with a huge potential, so we are very pleased to be part of this important initiative and hope that governments will also recognise the potential of this technology and introduce policy instruments and financial incentives in its support.
“Ultimately, our ambition is to achieve zero carbon emission flying, and we are working with partners across the industry, including Airbus, Rolls-Royce, GKN Aerospace, Cranfield Aerospace Solutions and Wright Electric, on several dedicated projects to accelerate the development of future zero carbon emission aircraft technology.”
