Kintetsu and Shell Aviation sign SAF agreement

Partnership will use Shell’s Avelia platform to accelerate low-carbon air freight solutions.

Kintetsu World Express has signed a new agreement with Shell Aviation to advance the use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) in global freight forwarding. The partnership builds on their joint participation in the Smart Freight Centre’s market-based measures pilot program in 2023.

Under the agreement, KWE will adopt Shell Aviation’s digital platform, Avelia, which enables companies to access the environmental benefits of SAF even when the fuel is not physically available at their locations. 

Tatsuya Narasaki, Managing Officer at KWE, highlighted the importance of SAF in the company’s sustainability strategy: “To mitigate the environmental impact of our global operations, we are working to reduce CO2 emissions not only in Japan but also around the world. We are pleased to announce that our near-term and long-term net-zero emissions reduction targets have been formally approved by SBTi.”

The blockchain-based platform provides transparency, traceability, and safeguards against double counting, ensuring credible reporting of emissions reductions.

“We value our collaboration with KWE since the early days of the Smart Freight Centre’s market based measures pilot,” added Doris Tan, Head of Shell Aviation, Asia Pacific and Middle East. “Through Avelia, we aim to accelerate SAF adoption and provide companies like KWE with a clear, scalable pathway to credible life cycle GHG emissions reductions from aviation.”

Founded in Japan in 1948, Kintetsu World Express (KWE) has built a global logistics network, with nearly 700 offices in more than 300 cities worldwide, handling over one million tons of air freight and one million TEUs of ocean cargo annually.