Neste, International Sustainability and Carbon Certification (ISCC) and DHL Group have developed and tested a Credit Transfer System to allow airlines, logistics service providers and end customers to report emission reduction achieved by using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF).

The Credit Transfer System was developed by the ISCC, non-profit organization with a history in supply chain certification.

In the ISCC Credit Transfer System, SAF use and related sustainability benefits, namely greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reductions, are tracked and transferred via a registry operated by ISCC.

The system provides traceability of SAF transactions and related sustainability benefits. This allows companies purchasing SAF and airlines using the fuel to credibly and transparently claim emission reductions and use them towards their climate targets.

In developing the system, ISCC worked closely with key stakeholders from across the aviation sector. The system is designed to align closely with the requirements set by the Science Based Targets initiative’s (SBTi) aviation guidance for SAF use in addressing organizations’ value chain (Scope 3) emissions.

The system was tested by Neste and ISCC in cooperation with DHL’s earlier this year. Neste utilized one of its ISCC EU certified SAF deliveries to DHL Group’s airline EAT and registered the environmental attributes of those SAF volumes, such as the emission reductions achieved, as ‘credits’ in the ISCC registry.

This enabled EAT, the airline using the SAF, to claim a reduction in its own Scope 1 emissions, and the corresponding Scope 1 credit was retired on behalf of EAT ensuring the credit cannot be used again. The Scope 3 credit for the achieved reduction in indirect emissions was transferred to DHL’s account in the registry.

“ISCC has developed the Credit Transfer System as a natural continuation of our established and globally used supply chain certification systems. With the ISCC Credit Transfer System, we provide a solution for traceable and credible Scope 1 and 3 emission reduction claims related to SAF use,” said Prof. Dr. Gernot Klepper, Chairman of the ISCC Association.

Following the successful pilot, the system is now ready for public consultation and can afterwards be used by all companies – airlines, logistic service providers and corporate end-customers – wishing to ensure credible and transparent reporting of emission reductions from the use of SAF.