Dive Brief:
- Deutsche Bank is backing the deployment of around 1,600 metric tons of sustainable aviation fuel in collaboration with Lufthansa Group, the companies announced Thursday.
- The SAF from the deal is estimated to enable emissions reductions worth 5,500 metric tons of carbon dioxide compared to conventional jet fuel or fossil-derived kerosene, according to a July 2 release.
- The German lender said its investment with the German aviation and airline company aligns with the bank’s goal to reduce the carbon footprint associated with business travel. Deutsche Bank also has a target of achieving net-zero emissions across its scope 1, 2 and 3 categories by 2050.
Dive Insight:
Deutsche Bank and Lufthansa said the avoided carbon emissions are approximately equivalent to the carbon footprint of 520 flights taken between Frankfurt and London.
SAF has the potential to reduce lifecycle carbon emissions by up to 80% compared to conventional fossil kerosene, according to the Air Transport Action Group. However, the International Air Transport Association found that SAF use made up just 0.6% of global jet fuel use in 2025 and is expected to provide only 0.8% of jet fuel consumption this year. Although SAF production doubled last year, its growth is expected to slow this year, according to IATA.
The deal between the two companies is also in line with Deutsche Bank’s broader sustainability strategy. Last fall, the bank released its latest transition plan and reaffirmed its commitment to reaching net-zero and decarbonizing the economy while some global banking peers sought to recalibrate their public messaging around sustainability in the wake of increased political scrutiny.
“Sustainable Aviation Fuel is an important instrument for Deutsche Bank in our efforts to nearly halve our CO₂ emissions along our supply chain by 2030 compared with 2019,” Deutsche Bank Chief Sustainability Officer Jörg Eigendorf said in the Thursday release.
“It is also important for us to send a signal: only if there is reliable demand will SAF producers invest in production and make alternative fuels more competitive. This is a key part of our overall approach: we want to reduce CO₂ emissions from our business travel and offset the remaining emissions where feasible," Eigendorf added.
Aside from maintaining its net-zero targets, Deutsche Bank also wrote in its transition plan it had reduced its scope 1 emissions by 66% and market-based scope 2 emissions by 84% by the end of 2024, compared to a 2019 baseline. The bank also reduced its scope 3 emissions by 45% within the same time frame.
Additionally, the bank reiterated its commitment to hit sectoral decarbonization targets for the eight most carbon-intensive sectors in its corporate loan portfolio in 2030 and 2050. These sectors include oil and gas, power generation, automotives, steel, coal mining, cement, shipping and commercial aviation.
