Qatar Airways launched a voluntary carbon offset programme for corporate customers. This initiative will enable corporate and trade clients to offset their own carbon emissions via a dedicated web portal at any time before or after a flight.
The Qatar Airways voluntary carbon offset programme allows its corporate clients to offset or reduce the carbon emissions associated with their business travel, and empowers them to make sustainable choices. With this, companies work towards their sustainability goals while they collaborate with the global airline to advance their carbon neutrality goals.
Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, His Excellency Mr. Akbar Al Baker, said: “Building a long-term sustainable aviation industry requires coordinated efforts, and businesses play an important role in building more environmentally friendly and more sustainable air travel. We are happy to provide an opportunity for our corporate clients to voluntarily offset the carbon footprint of corporate trips through recognised projects that help both communities and the environment, and encourage them to make carbon offsetting part of their carbon management plan. This further supports the Qatar Airways Group’s goal to strengthen our environmental sustainability efforts and enhances our leadership position in the aviation industry.”
Built on a partnership with the International Air Transport Association’s (IATA), the leading programme provides Qatar Airways’ customers a customised environmental solution with the assurance that the credits bought to offset these emissions are from projects delivering independently verified carbon reductions, as well as wider environmental and social benefits. This new programme reaffirms our industry’s ambition to reach our climate targets while we drive innovation and bring other social, environmental or economic benefits.
This new programme uses the IATA industry best practice for calculating CO2 emissions, and it has been designed to simplify the process for our customers, offering them innovative solutions towards achieving their environmental commitments on climate change. Initial emissions will be offset with a leading renewable energy project with additional verified projects to be included in the near future.
Since 2020, the Qatar Airways’ Voluntary Carbon Offsetting Programme has been contributing with the Fatanpur Wind Farm project located in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, consisting of 54 wind turbines, which generate a combined output of 108 MW, and avoids 210,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions per year. The support for the Fatanpur project not only reduces global carbon emissions, it also provides employment opportunities; delivers improved education through providing materials and expertise to nearby schools; and supports a mobile medical unit – enabling improved healthcare to the local community.
In November 2020, Qatar Airways announced the official launch of its voluntary carbon offset programme for passengers. Subsequently in November 2021, Qatar Airways Cargo, the freight division of Qatar Airways Group, also launched its new voluntary carbon offsetting programme for air cargo shipments, becoming the first cargo carrier to join the IATA CO2NNECT platform and the first airline in the world to make a carbon transaction through the IATA Aviation Carbon Exchange (ACE) via IATA Clearing House (ICH).
As one of the world’s leading airline, Qatar Airways is committed in its efforts collaborate with the industry stakeholders to address carbon emissions, and allow its customers to easily incorporate carbon-neutral business practices into their overall corporate strategy.
A multiple award-winning airline, Qatar Airways was recently announced as the ‘Airline of the Year’ at the 2021 World Airline Awards, managed by the international air transport rating organisation, Skytrax. It was also named ‘World’s Best Business Class’, ‘World’s Best Business Class Airline Lounge’, ‘World’s Best Business Class Airline Seat’, ‘World’s Best Business Class Onboard Catering’ and ‘Best Airline in the Middle East’. The airline continues to stand alone at the top of the industry having won the main prize for an unprecedented sixth time (2011, 2012, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2021). Qatar Airways recognises the importance of environmental sustainability in aviation. We are committed to being at the forefront and working in collaboration with our global and regional partners on achieving the industry’s decarbonisation goals.
