Qantas and Airbus jointly invest $9M in Climate Tech Partners to accellerate SAF development

In Australia, Qantas and Airbus have jointly committed to invest AUD$15 million into Climate Tech Partners (CTP), a leading climate-focused venture capital fund, to support their shared ambition to accelerate the development of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) and other aviation decarbonisation technologies.

The announcement was made in Sydney by Airbus Chief Sustainability Office Julie Kitcher and Qantas Chief Sustainability Officer Fiona Messent.

CTP’s unique approach involves working closely with corporate partners to identify and support technology solutions tailored to aviation needs.

Qantas and Airbus’ collaboration with CTP will help stimulate technological advancements in SAF, particularly in Australia, through a dedicated investment vehicle. It will focus on technologies for SAF production, feedstock development and other value-chain innovations and will sit alongside Climate Tech Partner’s main fund.  CTP will leverage the diverse skills and knowledge base of its group of 12 partners – made up of leaders in industries ranging from energy generation to infrastructure – to provide mentorship and strategic guidance to enable further collaboration.

This initiative will help bridge the gap that Qantas and Airbus have identified between early-stage climate technologies and at-scale commercial production in Australia.

Through this partnership, CTP will invest on behalf of Qantas and Airbus into leading local and global start-ups focused on SAF and other innovative technologies. As these solutions mature, Qantas and Airbus have the option to explore further follow-on and direct investments enabling deployment of the start-up’s technologies in real-world Australian projects.

The investment will be made from Qantas and Airbus’ $200 million partnership which was established in 2022 to help accelerate SAF production.