Lufthansa Cargo and the global Japanese logistics company Nippon Express Europe GmbH (Nippon Express Europe) have contractually agreed to advocate the use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) when transporting airfreight shipments.

The environmentally-friendly aviation fuel will enable the Nippon Express Group to achieve emissions savings of approximately 3,150 tons within one year.

Furthermore, the agreement reached with Lufthansa Cargo includes contributing to high-quality and certified climate protection projects for the so-called well-to-tank emissions that arise during the production and supply of SAF.

The Nippon Express Group has set the goal of a 50% reduction in SCOPE 1 and 2 emissions by 2030 compared to 2013 as a response to climate change and to contribute to the realization of a carbon-neutral society by 2050.

Nippon Express Co., Ltd. aims to reduce emissions by 350,000 tons by 2023, equivalent to a 30% reduction from 2013 levels.

In May 2023, NIPPON EXPRESS HOLDINGS, Inc. submitted a Letter of Commitment to be certified as a Science Based Targets (SBT) company, and the entire group is working together to achieve a carbon-neutral society by 2050.

"We have enjoyed a trusting long-standing relationship with Nippon Express Europe as a Global Partner. We appreciate working jointly with Nippon Express Europe also on sustainability goals that are important to both of us," said Ashwin Bhat, CEO of Lufthansa Cargo.

"Every player in the logistics industry has a model here, and only together can we succeed in making our business more environmentally friendly along the entire supply chain."

Bhat went on to note that the more SAF is used in the transportation of goods by air freight, the more likely that the industry would succeed in moving away from fossil fuels, making the entire air freight industry more sustainable.

"We at the Nippon Express Group remain mindful of the environmental effect of the increasing demand for air freight. We fully acknowledge this reality, and we must move quickly to take action to slow global warming. This agreement to advocate using SAF represents a step in the right direction on the way to a greener future," commented Shinichi Kakiyama, managing director of Nippon Express Europe.

"Together with Lufthansa Cargo, we are honoured to embark on this journey to meet our sustainability goals and fulfil our ongoing commitment to combat climate change," Kakiyama added.

Lufthansa Cargo is committed to the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals and is actively advancing five selected sustainability goals, including ‘Climate Action’.

The cargo airline also supports the Lufthansa Group's ambitious CO₂ reduction targets: the aviation group aims to halve net CO₂ emissions by as early as 2030 compared to 2019.

To this end, the Lufthansa Group is pursuing a clearly defined reduction path that has been validated by the so-called ‘Science Based Target Initiative’ (SBTi) — making the Lufthansa Group the first airline group in Europe with a scientifically based CO₂ reduction target in line with the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement of 2015.

With its Boeing 777F long-haul fleet, Lufthansa Cargo operates the most modern and efficient freighters. Lufthansa said in order to reduce the fleet's carbon footprint even further, the freighters have been successively equipped with AeroSHARK since the beginning of the year: an innovative foil modelled on shark skin reduces the aircraft's frictional resistance in the air.

It said that this saves around 3,700 tons of kerosene and almost 11,700 tons of CO₂ emissions per year.