“SAF is central to the decarbonization of the aviation sector,” believes Raman Ojha, Chairman of Shell Aviation. “Having said that, there hasn’t really been a massive increase in SAF adoption and penetration. It’s not because of a lack of production capacity, but there are a lot of things involved. And in that context the book and the claim help bridge that gap.”
Bridging the gap between book and claim
book and claim are one chain of custody modelWhere the flow of administrative records is not necessarily linked to the physical product through the supply chain (Source: ISO 22095:2020).
Book and claim potentially enables airlines and corporations to access the life cycle GHG emissions reduction benefits of SAF relative to conventional jet fuel, even if SAF is not physically available in their location; This model helps bridge the gap between concentrated supply and global demand until the availability of SAF improves.
“Frankly, without the book and the claims, none of the short-term science-based goals will be achieved,” says Bettina Paschke, vice president of ESG accounting, reporting and controlling at DHL Express. “The book and the claims are essential to achieving science-based goals.”
“SAF production facilities are not everywhere,” she reiterates. “They are very concentrated in one location, and if a customer wanted to meet a massive balancing obligation, they would have to send SAF around the world to be at that airport for that customer. That would be too complex, and too unrealistic.” This will, perversely, also increase total emissions. By using book and claim instead, air freight operators can unlock the life cycle greenhouse gas emission reduction benefits of SAF relative to conventional jet fuel, without waiting for supply to expand. “In the future, when we have SAF product facilities at every airport, this will no longer be necessary,” she says. “But at the moment, that is not the case.”
At DHL, the mechanism has become central to achieving its own three interconnected sustainability pillars, which focus on decarbonizing logistics supply chains, supporting customers towards their decarbonization targets and ensuring credible emissions claims are shared along the value chain.
Demonstrating the importance of a reliable and viable framework for book and claims systems also inspired Shell’s 2022 launch of Avelia, one of the first blockchain-powered digital SAF book and claims solutions for aviation, expanding to include air freight in addition to business travel in 2024. Depending on the offering, Avelia provides freight forwarders the opportunity to share the life cycle greenhouse gas emissions reduction benefits of SAF relative to traditional jet fuel across the value chain with shippers who use their services.
Ojha says, “It is also backed by a physical supply chain, which gives our customers – be they corporates or freight forwarders or even airlines – peace of mind that the SAF has been injected at a certain airport, utilized and the environmental attributes are tracked with the help of blockchain, where they are being retired.”
