Airbus and multiple major carriers sign LoIs relating to carbon removal solutions

Airbus, along with Air Canada, Air France-KLM, LATAM Airlines Group, Virgin Atlantic, Lufthansa Group and International Airlines Group (IAG) have all signed letters of intent (LoIs) to confirm their joint desire to identify opportunities where direct air carbon capture technology (DACCS) could supply future carbon removal credits for the airline industry.

Known as Direct Air Carbon Capture and Storage, DACSS is a system used to remove CO2 from the air using high-powered fans which is then safely stored in geologic reservoirs. The intention behind the technology is to mitigate for the fact it is not possible to directly capture CO2 emissions from aircraft engines, and instead the equivalent amount of CO2 is extracted from the general atmosphere to provide ‘carbon credits’.

The new technology will not provide the sole solution to the industry’s problem with CO2 emissions. Major steps have already been taken to introduce the use of sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) which produce far lower CO2 emissions than standard aviation fuel. With these LoIs, the above-mentioned airlines have committed to engage in negotiations on the potential for pre-purchase of verified and durable carbon removal credits, beginning in 2025 and running through to 2028.

Airbus’ partner 1PointFive will be responsible for issuing the carbon removal credits – the company is a subsidiary of Occidental’s Low Carbon Ventures business and the global deployment partner of direct air capture company Carbon Engineering. Airbus’ partnership with 1PointFive includes the pre-purchase of 400,000 tonnes of carbon removal credits which will be delivered over a four-year period.