ALTA member airlines unanimously approved a resolution to work jointly to achieve net zero emissions by 2050
The Latin American and Caribbean Air Transport Association (ALTA) welcomes the resolution approved during the 24th Ordinary General Assembly of the Latin American Civil Aviation Commission (CLAC) that urges its 22 member states to consider the creation of regional policies that encourage development for the production and use of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF).
The resolution includes a proposal for measures to achieve this: incentivize SAF production programs (such as loan guarantees or capital grants), support supply chain research and development in SAF production to reduce costs and create an adequate regulatory framework to accelerate investments.
“We enthusiastically welcome the resolution approved by the member States of LACAC, since this represents an important step towards achieving the availability of sustainable aviation fuels on a larger scale, which can reduce costs and speed up their implementation to meet the objectives environmental. The aligned industry-government work is critical to achieve efficient policies, have legal certainty that allows investments, infrastructure development that generates competitiveness. From ALTA we reiterate our full support to the governments of the region in the implementation of this resolution and in the creation of bridges of collaborative work with the private sector”, commented José Ricardo Botelho, Executive Director & CEO of ALTA.
In this line, on October 24, 2021, the 41st Annual General Assembly of ALTA was held in Bogotá, Colombia. During this meeting, the member airlines of ALTA unanimously approved a resolution to work jointly to achieve zero net emissions by 2050; highlighting the need for effective and efficient policies in the region for the provision of sustainable aviation fuels on a large scale and at competitive costs. ALTA has redoubled its efforts to support its members in achieving this ambitious but clear goal.
During the meeting of civil aviation authorities in Montevideo, which also included the highest authorities of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), the Minister of Defense of Uruguay, the Minister of Tourism of Ecuador, the Undersecretary of Tourism of Uruguay, representatives of the civil aviation organizations from Africa, Arab countries, Asia, the United States and Europe, among other distinguished participants, the Legal Director of ALTA, Gonzalo Yelpo, presented the details for the execution of the "book and claim" system that represents a mechanism for the implementation of a more efficient transparent SAF market that avoids carbon emissions from SAF transport.
Among the advantages presented by Yelpo are: the facilitation of the production of SAF in regions with lower production costs, minimizing carbon emissions related to the transport of SAF or raw materials and minimizing volume restrictions of SAF for buyers due to restrictions logistics or locally produced, while generating new jobs and opportunities.
“This system has the potential to speed up the development of an SAF production and distribution industry in the region. It is important to consider that harmonization is once again the key, since the diversity of regulations would create a greater administrative burden for the industry and increase market uncertainty”, commented Gonzalo Yelpo, Legal Director of ALTA.
ALTA has a Fuel Committee that is working on the implementation of different initiatives to streamline and scale the availability of SAF in the region. ALTA's executive team has a firm commitment to support all its members in the implementation of coherent and efficient strategies to take care of the environment in the long term, while not representing additional costs for the industry or users. The next face-to-face meeting of this committee will be from September 14 to 16, 2022 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.