Landmark agreement reached on Sustainable Aviation Fuels

28 November 2023: Last week, at the third Conference on Aviation and Alternative Fuels (CAAF/3) in Dubai, the aviation sector adopted a collective goal to start the shift away from fossil fuels. Governments from over 100 states met with industry and civil society and set a goal that aviation fuel in 2030 should be 5 per cent less carbon intensive than fossil fuel, to be achieved through a transition to sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) and lower carbon aviation fuels (LCAFs).

The ICAO CAAF/3 conference had another main outcome: the Global Framework for Cleaner Energies, to help states with the transition. It includes capacity building programmes, knowledge and technology transfer, the needed access to financing and guidance on the best policies to help scale SAF.

Key elements of the Framework include a collective vision for the clean energy transition, harmonised regulatory foundations, supporting implementation initiatives and improved access to financing for related initiatives so that no country is left behind. Each country will complete the vision in its own timeframe, without attributing specific obligations or commitments in the form of emissions reduction goals. 

ICAO agreed to review the ambition by 2028 to take into account market developments and new investments in production capacity around the world.

ERA welcomes the agreement reached and the initiatives to fulfil this goal.