India's Ministry of Civil Aviation (MoCA) has announced that the mandatory second phase offsetting requirements under ICAO's Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) will be applicable for Indian airlines and aviation operators from 2027.
In a statement from its Minister of State in the Ministry Of Civil Aviation (Gen. (Dr) V. K.Singh Retd), it noted that during the 39th General Assembly, ICAO decided to implement a Global Market Based Measure (GMBM) scheme in the form of Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (CORSIA) to address CO2 emissions from international civil aviation.
For India, it said the measures taken include the issuance of Civil Aviation Requirements on "CORSIA" after consultation with the stakeholders.
It also issued guidance material for airline operators and other stakeholders for better understanding of the design elements of CORSIA as well as carried out various workshops on CORSIA training together with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
"For Indian Operators, the CORSIA offsetting requirements will be applicable from 2027 viz. from Mandatory (Second) phase of the CORSIA implementation," it said, adding that India has filed reservations at the 40th ICAO Assembly in 2019 regarding the current structure of CORSIA.
Airline emissions account for 2% of global greenhouse gas emissions.
CORSIA has a phased implementation structure including 1) a voluntary pilot phase from 2021 to 2023; a first phase from 2024 through 2026. Meanwhile, the second phase is set from 2027 through 2035, which is mandatory for most states.
CORSIA eventually aims to help the aviation industry reach its “aspirational goal” to make all growth in international flights after 2020 “carbon neutral.”
