Lufthansa Innovation Hub has launched a new sustainability platform, Compensaid, to enable airline passengers to offset their individual carbon footprint using Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).
The platform combines a tracking tool for flights of all airlines worldwide with a sustainability platform that makes it possible to offset a passenger’s personal CO2 emissions. Travellers receive a detailed evaluation of their entire travel history including flight distance, time and destinations, as well as the efficiency of the aircraft type, individual fuel consumption and the associated CO2 emissions.
Passengers have two options for offsetting – including enabling them to replace fossil aviation fuels one-to-one with SAF.
The platform calculates the market-based surcharge in comparison to fossil kerosene, and travellers willing to pay this surcharge can use it to cover their individual kerosene consumption with the climate-neutral fuel. Lufthansa Group will continue to pay the basic rate for the kerosene.
The SAF purchases through the offsetting process will be deployed on Lufthansa flights within a period of six months.
The Hub said this is the first online platform of its kind to provide end customers with a “transparent, quick and effective way to offset their CO2 consumption when flying using CO2 neutral fuels.”
As an alternative, travellers can also use the platform to support a reforestation project in Nicaragua.
Gleb Tritus, managing director Lufthansa Innovation Hub said that while flying has many benefits for business and connections, it also has negative climate effects, “ which need to be counteracted.”
He added: “Every individual traveller can take action: With “Compensaid,” we provide people with a tool that shows them the climate effects of their flights. This impact can be reduced significantly with the help of innovative technologies such as sustainable fuel.”
Compensaid’s first partner is myclimate – the Swiss climate protection foundation, and a long-standing partner of the Lufthansa Group in voluntary CO2 offsetting. The company will also be working with the Corporate Fuel Management of the Lufthansa Group where fuel experts purchase the certified alternative fuel globally and supply it to Lufthansa flight operations.
“Sustainable Aviation Fuel is a groundbreaking way to produce sustainable kerosene. We are delighted to support “Compensaid,” an innovative platform that for the first time enables customers to invest in CO2neutral fuel for their flights,” says Thorsten Luft, head of fuel management at Lufthansa Group.
The first test version of the platform launched in early August. The Hub said that in response to expected customer demand, plans are in the works to expand the partner network for offsetting and to extend the service to all means of transport and their CO2 emissions.
