LONDON – On December 21, it was announced that DHL Express Italy will be testing Eni’s Biojet sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) across 28 of its cargo flights from Milan Malpensa Airport (MXP).
The arrangement will be in collusion with the SEA Group – the managing operator of both Milan Malpensa and Milan Linate airports.
Testing Eni Biojet SAF
As many of the worlds carriers all jump on the bandwagon of beginning to utilise sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) throughout their operations, DHL Express Italy becomes the latest from the cargo sector to venture down this path.
This is marks the first time an Italian express air courier is going to utilise SAF across some of its services.
As part of this new agreement, by the end of 2022, 28 of DHL Express Italy’s services will be powered using Eni’s Biojet SAF which has been produce at its Livorno refinery on the Italian west coast nearby the historical city of Pisa.
Eni Biojet’s SAF is produced with a 20% blend of JetA1 aviation fuel with the remaining 80% being produced from waste raw materials, animal fat and used vegetable oils.
With Eni’s Livorno refinery processes these materials from crops that does not compete with the food supply chain.
This latest agreement with Eni Biojet is another project as part of the 91 that DHL Express had activated during 2022 through a variety of initiatives across Italy in line with ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) themes.
Milan Malpensa Airport (MXP) was inaugurated as a DHL Express Hub back in March 2021 and has since grown to cater for 1,100 employees that is able to handle an average of 70% of cargo tonnage that is transported between all Italian airports.
Senior Comments
Commenting on the latest agreement to test Eni Biojet’s SAF, DHL Express Italy’s Chief Executive Officer, Nazzarena Franco said”
“I am very happy that we can close this year with yet another sustainability initiative, a theme that is among the first when I draw the company’s strategic line and one that I experience first-hand in my private life.”
“A little more than a month ago we held an environmental and social event in the centre of Milan (Run For Inclusion) and today we proudly lead the launch of SAF for our flights from Malpensa.”
“This is made possible thanks to the collaboration with SEA, our long-standing partner, with whom we share the same values, and of course Eni, who worked with our teams to carry out this test.”
“I want this to be the first step towards an even more sustainable future and I hope that the companies watching us will be inspired and also want to explore innovations that support the environment.”
Also adding comments on this latest announcement, Eni Sustainable’s Mobility Director, Stefano Ballista says, “Eni Biojet is one of the flagship products in our decarbonisation offering.”
“Thanks to the investment in technology we have developed over the last decade, we are able to produce a biogenic kerosene that can be blended up to 20%, compared to the 2% sustainable fuel quota mandatory as of 2025.”
“We successfully tested Eni Biojet to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Monza racetrack, with fuel produced in Livorno in partnership with the Gela bio-refinery.”
“We have designed two plants specifically for the production of SAF in the Eni bio-refineries in Venice and Gela, and from 2024 they will bring to the market the necessary amounts to meet the requirements of EU regulations.”
SEA Milan Airports Chief Executive Officer, Armando Brunini also adds, “This partnership with Eni and DHL, the first company at Malpensa to use SAF, is an important step towards the decarbonisation of the air transport sector, a priority goal for our industry.”
“It will be a long and complex process that requires the synergy of all the actors involved to generate concrete actions, as the agreement signed today demonstrates.”
“SEA has long since started to establish strategic partnerships and invest in technologies and projects to speed up the transition towards a more sustainable future for air transport.”
“I am convinced that our sector should lead the ecological transition and, given concrete and measurable results, deserves a supportive and incentivising policy framework.”
Overall
Marking a historical moment for the Italian aviation industry, this new agreement will certainly begin to surge the sector into a good and steady motion for achieving net zero carbon emissions.
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