IATA upgrades CO2 Connect for Cargo with cross-industry partnerships

The International Air Transport Association (IATA) is taking another essential step towards decarbonisation in the aviation sector. At the IATA World Sustainability Symposium (WSS) held in Miami, United States, between September 24 and 25, the association announced its collaboration with British Airways and Microsoft. This collaboration is aimed towards further enhancing the accuracy of IATA CO2 Connect in calculating carbon emissions.

The announcement also mentioned that IATA CO2 Connect for Cargo would be available as of the first quarter of 2025, which would be further distributed across quote and book systems, freight forwarders, shippers and airlines. This system is aimed to build on the experience of IATA CO2 Connect, which was launched in June 2022 to provide accurate emissions calculations for passenger flights. For the passenger side of the business, the tool used primary data from more than 40 airlines, including British Airways and an industry-endorsed calculation methodology.

However, based on IATA’s collaboration for the cargo side of the business, British Airlines would be contributing flight-level fuel burn data of its approximately 700 daily flights to IATA CO2 Connect. The UK-based airline’s Director of Sustainability, Carrie Harris, said, “At British Airways, transparency and consistency are essential to our sustainability efforts. By sharing our flight-level fuel burn data with IATA CO2 Connect, we’re enhancing the accuracy of CO2 emissions calculations and ensuring access to reliable, clear information. It's crucial for the entire industry to align on these standards, and collaboration is key.

According to an official release by IATA, Microsoft will also contribute to the development of IATA CO2 Connect for Cargo by providing technical guidance and by becoming one of the first pilot testers of the service. “Industry collaboration is essential for the decarbonization of aviation. Using CO2 Connect for Cargo will help Microsoft work with airlines to reduce emissions, make informed upstream investments with our partners, and purchase SAF and SAF certificates,” said Nico De Golia, Director of Sustainability for Microsoft Cloud Logistics.

“This announcement showcases the potential impact when companies work to build a strong data foundation, driving the key actions needed to achieve our shared sustainability goals,” added the spokesperson of Bill Gates’s founded multinational technology company. Moreover, the official release adds that These developments build on the March 2024 announcement that IATA is working with the Smart Freight Centre (SFC) in the development of IATA CO2 Connect for Cargo.

“Strong relationships, including those announced today with British Airways and Microsoft, will help make IATA CO2 Connect for Cargo a more powerful and more accurate tool. The world is watching as aviation progresses on the challenging journey of decarbonisation. Transparency and accuracy—enhanced by these partnerships—are critical. Our common aim is to have the most accurate data about aviation’s carbon emissions. That will help the industry’s customers in managing and reporting their carbon footprints and it will inform the many strategic decisions that airlines will need to make for their own decarbonisation,” said Marie Owens Thomsen, IATA’s Senior Vice President Sustainability and Chief Economist.

IATA’s WSS also brought another collaboration into the limelight—the association’s partnership with Thrust Carbon. By teaming up with the sustainability intelligence platform provider – Thrust Carbon, the aviation industry association is expanding its distribution network for its IATA CO2 Connect emissions calculations. This agreement will commence in October 2024.

Talking about the importance of such a collaboration, IATA’s Senior Vice President Commercial Products and Services, Frederic Leger said, “The corporate travel sector needs accurate and comparable CO2 emissions calculations for its Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) monitoring and reporting. By working with Thrust Carbon, we will respond to this important need with calculations based on actual operational data provided by a growing community of airlines.”

Adding to that, Founder of Thrust Carbon, Kit Aspen mentioned, “As aviation’s main trade association, IATA has a long tradition in setting industry standards, and we are thrilled with the initiative they are taking towards achieving greater transparency and sustainability. As a result of our collaboration, our corporate customers can now have easier and wider access to the CO2 Connect methodology, including their data flowing in and out of every leading travel management company and expense platform. This enables more consistency for those customers, and the ability to accurately plan carrier and route changes to help meet reduction goals.”

On the other hand, the German logistics company DB Schenker partnered with Microsoft Cloud Logistics to use Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) and Sustainable Marine Fuel (SMF). With a mission to collectively reduce the environmental footprint of transportation practices, this collaboration plans to include building best-in-class logistics warehouses and implementing alternative energy trucks.

While talking about the partnership that looks to reduce carbon footprint beyond just aviation, DB Schenker’s CEO mentioned,” Microsoft and DB Schenker, that’s two global leaders united to reduce emissions in transportation and logistics. Our cooperation is expected to demonstrate that significant CO2e-savings are feasible already in today’s intercontinental supply chains. The upgrade of the Netherlands warehouse to BREEAM Excellent status and the Illinois, United States SuperHub receiving the LEED Platinum Certification are prime examples of our dedication to paving the way for more sustainable and innovative logistics solutions.”

Adding to that, Microsoft Cloud Supply Chain CVP Cliff Henson said, “These efforts mark a significant step forward in our efforts to reduce our environmental impacts in line with Microsoft’s 2030 sustainability commitments.” An official release by DB Schenker added that sustainable aviation and maritime fuels will be procured by DB Schenker and allocated to Microsoft Cloud Logistics’ inbound Air and Ocean shipments, and is anticipated to result in a reduction of at least 15.000 t of CO2e-emissions per year. In March 2024, DB Schenker also implemented the use of Hydrogenated Vegetable Oil (HVO or Renewable Diesel) for all ocean shipments travelling from California to Texas. In addition, DB Schenker has extended its environmental sustainability efforts with Microsoft Cloud to land transport in Europe and North America with HVO100 fuelling stations and electric vehicles.