• The International Air Transport Association established the Civil Aviation Decarbonization Organization to manage the upcoming Sustainable Aviation Fuel Registry
• The Montreal-based non-profit body aims to harmonize SAF registry principles across the industry
• The SAF Registry will act as a global system to track SAF transactions, enabling airlines and corporate customers to claim environmental benefits under regulatory and voluntary frameworks
The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has established the Civil Aviation Decarbonization Organization (CADO) to manage the upcoming Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) Registry.
In a statement, IATA said CADO will operate as an independent, not-for-profit entity based in Montreal, Canada, overseeing the SAF Registry with “an open and global approach that supports the scrutiny needed to build trust among all stakeholders.”
CADO membership is open to:
• Organizations that operate in or contribute directly to the SAF value chain, or that represent any association or group of participants in the SAF value chain
• States or quasi-state organizations with a direct interest in the operations and benefit of the SAF Registry
• Related interest groups indirectly benefit from SAF deployed in the aviation system
“CADO will turbo-charge the imminent launch of the IATA-developed SAF Registry,” said Marie Owens Thomsen, IATA’s senior vice president sustainability and chief economist. “In fact, the door is open for any stakeholder in the SAF value chain, including governments, to join CADO. This inclusive approach should also be a force for the harmonization of the principles on which all SAF registries operate.”
The SAF Registry, developed by IATA, is designed to standardize and document SAF transactions, allowing airlines and corporate customers to accurately track and claim environmental benefits under both regulatory mandates and voluntary sustainability commitments.
Willie Walsh, IATA’s Director General, emphasized its importance in scaling SAF adoption. “The SAF Registry is a critical piece of market infrastructure that is indispensable in building a global, transparent, and liquid global market for SAF. The industry’s commitment to build the Registry and establish CADO to manage it should inspire governments, fossil fuel producers, and investors to engage in the SAF market with commensurate vigor. Ramping-up SAF production is the common goal and the structure we are putting in place with CADO is an important step in moving decarbonization forward.”
The registry also aims to tackle one of the biggest challenges in SAF adoption: limited supply and uneven geographic distribution by connecting airlines with SAF producers and suppliers worldwide. In addition, it gives access to airlines’ corporate customers to in-sector emissions reductions and capitalizes on firms’ capacity to co-finance the cost of decarbonization.
Participation in the SAF Registry will be free until April 2027, after which it will transition to a cost-recovery model.
