Cathay Pacific collaborates with SPIC to develop SAF supply chain

Cathay Pacific has teamed up with the State Power Investment Corporation (SPIC) to drive the further development of the sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) supply chain in China.
SPIC is one of the largest state-owned energy companies in the Chinese mainland and a company with the world’s largest solar power installed capacity.
SPIC and Cathay Pacific have recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) covering four SAF plants under SPIC.
SPIC Chairman Qian Zhimin said: “The signing of our cooperation pact is an important milestone in SPIC’s sustainable development pursuits, and a significant contribution by a Chinese enterprise towards supporting sustainable development in the global aviation sector.
“We hope both parties can build on our collaboration in the certification and purchase of SAF to further cooperate in areas pertaining to the industry supply chain, project development and securing the necessary policy support.”
Cathay Pacific Group CEO Ronald Lam said: “We are very excited to be partnering with SPIC to support and accelerate the development of the SAF industry in China. Cathay Pacific has a target of using SAF for 10% of its total fuel consumption by 2030, which is a core component towards reaching our goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.
“This collaboration brings together the complementary advantages of SPIC’s strengths in the field of clean energy with Cathay Pacific’s expertise as an end-user of SAF. We hope this partnership will play an important role in the decarbonisation of the aviation industry.
“Under the MoU, Cathay Pacific will share international experience, and also feedback on the SAF certification process, value chain and overall market know-how to facilitate SPIC in the successful establishment of four SAF plants in the Chinese mainland.
“Building and strengthening the SAF supply chain is an ambitious goal and one that requires extensive collaborative work with many stakeholders to achieve. We want to send a clear message that SAF is going to be the most important lever for achieving net-zero carbon emissions within the aviation industry, and that there will be clear and stable demand from airlines.”