Microsoft has agreed a 10-year contract with World Energy to purchase sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) certificates as part of its decarbonisation efforts.

SAF certificates are a “book-and-claim” tracking mechanism allowing corporates to reduce CO2 emissions from business air travel, even if the flights being used by their travellers are not burning SAF in their engines.

The Microsoft deal would see 469,000 metric tonnes of CO2 being reduced from corporate air travel through the supply of 43.7 million gallons of SAF from World Energy to airlines.

Katie Ross, Microsoft’s director of carbon reduction strategy and market development, said: “This agreement exemplifies the power of collaboration and technology in driving meaningful change in one of the hardest-to-abate sectors.

“Not only will it help to reduce our business travel and supply chain logistics emissions, but we hope this agreement will inspire others to take action and support the transition to alternative fuels that will enable a decarbonised aviation industry.”  

The two companies also hope their agreement will help to establish “broader trust in digital monitoring and verification” in SAF certificates, which are specifically tied to the production and use of sustainable fuel. The certificates are independently accredited, tracked and verified through the book-and-claim system.

One of the major advantages of this system is that the sustainable fuel can be used at airports close to production sites instead of being shipped around the world.

Gene Gebolys, CEO of World Energy, added: “Through this agreement, we will empower one of the world’s most recognised innovators to grow their business while minimising their carbon impact and together we’re committing to making a sustained push well into the next decade to decarbonise aviation at ever greater scale.”

The amount of SAF covered by the agreement would be enough to fully decarbonise a round-trip journey between New York and Seattle for 824,000 passengers.

Earlier this year, Microsoft signed a deal with British Airways’ owner IAG for a “large-scale” purchase of SAF.

Book-and-claim platforms are being seen as one of the most effective ways for corporates to contribute towards the cost of SAF and reduce their Scope 3 emissions from business travel. Last year, American Express Global Business Travel, Shell and Accenture teamed up to create the Avelia platform for purchasing SAF.