Air France announced Monday to increase the prices of its tickets from 1 to 12 euros in order to offset part of the additional cost of using sustainable aviation fuel, which reduces CO2 emissions. The other companies in the group, KLM and Transavia, will also be affected by this measure, which will include, from January 10, “a contribution Sustainable Aviation Fuel » in the price of the ticket, as announced by the firm in a message to its customers.
These increases will be up to “1 to 4 euros in Economy cabin” and “from 1.50 to 12 euros in Business cabin, depending on the distance,” said Air France.
Fuels four to eight times more expensive
Sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), which are produced from used oils or forestry and agricultural residues, reduce CO2 emissions, the main greenhouse gas, by 75% over their life cycle. compared to fossil aviation fuel. But while aviation kerosene currently accounts for between 20% and 30% of airline costs, SAFs are four to eight times more expensive and are currently being produced in far too little to meet demand.
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“The emergence of sectors for large-scale production, in France and in Europe, will make it possible to reduce these costs”, according to Air France. Like the rest of the airline sector, the company must also rebuild its cash flow after the shock of Covid-19 which drowned it in debt.
Passengers invited to “contribute” to the purchase of fuel
Air France also offers its passengers, from Thursday, to “voluntarily contribute to the purchase of additional sustainable aviation fuel” on its website to reduce the carbon footprint of their journeys. “Each euro of voluntary contribution will be invested in the purchase of these fuels,” she assures us.
France introduced on January 1 an obligation to incorporate 1% of sustainable fuel in aviation kerosene and set up a roadmap to increase to 2% in 2025 then 5% in 2030. The European Commission, in as part of its new climate package Fit for 55, also proposes a gradual incorporation mandate, ranging from 2% in 2025 to 63% in 2050.
Global air transport, which contributes 2.5 to 3% of global emissions, has set itself the goal of achieving net zero emissions by 2050. To do this, it is counting on the renewal of fleets with more fuel-efficient planes, but most of the expected gains will come from the use of non-fossil fuels. Sustainable fuels accounted for less than 0.1% of the 360 billion liters of fuel used by aviation in 2019.