Qf’s mega $400m climate fund

Qantas has announced the launch of a $400 million Climate Fund as part of its newly updated long-term strategy, which outlines the carrier’s plans through to 2030 across key categories, including sustainability.

The new Climate Fund, which is the largest of its type for any airline, includes an additional $110 million investment on top of the $290m already committed.

The fund aims to drive the production of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), create high integrity offsets that deliver dividends for nature and carbon removal tech, as well as efficiency and waste reduction targets.

The huge cash pool will also be used to advocate the Australian Government to introduce a SAF blending mandate to help kickstart local production.

“All of the extra activity we have planned has to be underpinned by a focus on sustainability, particularly decarbonisation,” Qantas Group Chief Executive Officer Alan Joyce affirmed.

“We’re determined to be a leader in this space and that’s supported by the new commitments we’ve made today, as well as calling for more action industry-wide in the form of a sustainable aviation fuel mandate,” he added.

Qantas has announced Wheatbelt Connect as the first Climate Fund project, committing an initial $5m to the native reforestation and carbon farming initiative, which includes a study to investigate the conversion of native Mallee biomass into renewable fuels.

The airline will also use the fund to develop an alternative to single-use plastics to help meet efficiency and waste targets.