Air New Zealand scraps 2030 emissions target

The news: Air New Zealand is dropping its 2030 carbon intensity reduction target, citing challenges faced in fleet renewal and fuel availability, but it expects to stick to its 2050 net zero aim.

The numbers: The airline said it is withdrawing the target after careful consideration and is working on a new near-term carbon emissions reduction target. In 2022, it outlined a Science Based Targets initiative, requiring a 28.9% reduction in carbon intensity by 2030, from a 2019 baseline. It aims to reduce emissions by 70% by 2050.

The context: Air NZ CEO Greg Foran said on Tuesday many of the levers needed to meet the target, including the availability of new aircraft, affordability and availability of alternative jet fuels, and global and domestic regulatory and policy support are outside the airline’s direct control and remain challenging.

“In recent months and more so in the last few weeks, it has also become apparent that potential delays to our fleet renewal program pose an additional risk to the target’s achievability. It is possible the airline may need to retain its existing fleet for longer than planned due to global manufacturing and supply chain issues,” Foran told investors.