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The EU will on Wednesday unveil its most ambitious plan yet to tackle climate change, aiming to pull ahead in the race among the world's biggest economies to turn far-off green goals into concrete action this decade. The EC, which drafts EU policies, will set out in painstaking detail how the bloc's 27 countries can meet their collective goal to net reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 55% from 1990 levels by 2030. read more That is expected to mean raising the cost of emitting carbon for heating, transport and manufacturing, taxing high-carbon aviation and shipping fuels that have not been taxed before, and charging importers at the border for carbon they emitted to make products such as cement and steel abroad. "It's going to be the biggest climate package in our history," said Jytte Guteland, the Swedish lawmaker who was European Parliament's lead negotiator on the EU's climate targets. "Our economic sectors, our industries, everyone has to adapt to something new." The measures will require approval by member states and the European parliament. They are likely to face intense lobbying from some industrial sectors, from poorer European member states who want to protect their citizens from price hikes, and from higher polluting countries facing a more costly transition. A diplomat from one EU country said the success of the package would rest on its ability to be "realistic" and socially fair, while not destabilising the economy. As climate change impacts worsen around the world, Brussels will propose 12 policies to take aim at most big sources of emissions, including power plants, factories, cars, planes and heating systems in buildings.<br/>

A group campaigning for the increased use of sustainable aviation fuel in Europe estimates that production can be scaled up to meet 10% of the bloc’s jet fuel needs by 2030 – although hitting that target will require concerted policy action and come with a price tag of at least E120b over the next 15 years. Members of Clean Skies for Tomorrow (CST) say they support the EU’s SAF blending mandate which is expected to be published by mid-July. Its Guidelines for a Sustainable Aviation Fuel Blending Mandate in Europe publication assesses the feasibility of the production ramp-up required and its likely costs. CST suggests that using “tight sustainability criteria” for feedstock, SAF could account for 10% of jet fuel usage in Europe by 2030 “if supported by appropriate and timely measures”. However, the CST asserts that policies, such as a blending mandate that increases over time, must be implemented to create certain future demand for SAF, in order to make the economic case for the investment in production plants. In addition, it says public funding will be necessary to mature new production technologies, plus aviation must be given “preferential access” to “sustainable biomass resources”.<br/>

Train trips in the UK are on average 50% more expensive than flying on the same routes, forcing travellers to choose between price and the environment, a new study has found. Taking the train is more expensive on eight of the 10 most popular routes across the UK, according to research by consumer organisation Which?. The biggest price difference was in a plane fare between Birmingham and Newquay, at GBP67, and a train ticket at GBP180, more than 2.5 times as expensive. However, travelling by train would emit just a fifth of the carbon emissions that would be produced by flying on that route, the consumer outlet said. Airlines have launched dozens of new domestic routes this year, in response to growing demand for UK holidays. “Travellers who choose to take the train face significantly higher fares and journey times, putting those who want to lessen their environmental impact at a disadvantage,” said Rory Boland, travel editor at Which?. The figures come as the Government launched its plan to decarbonise transport, including a commitment to net zero domestic aviation emissions by 2040.<br/>

Egyptian Civil Aviation Minister Mohamed Manar announced that the domestic flight prices in Egypt have been reduced significantly in order to encourage domestic tourism. He explained that the price of a ticket from Cairo to Sharm el-Sheikh and Hurghada has been set at LE2,150, with a ticket to Aswan and Luxor slightly higher due to the distance. Manar said that these prices have decreased significantly, from around LE 4,000, in order to encourage domestic tourism. He continued, “For 5 years, domestic aviation has not had any kind of restrictions on private and non-government companies in operating domestic flights… there is no monopoly by EgyptAir.” The Civil Aviation Minister pointed out that there is complete coordination between his ministry and the Ministry of Tourism, adding that 160 flights during the Eid al-Adha days were offered by the company due to high demand during that period.<br/>

For much of the pandemic, Australia has been the envy of the world. The nation leveraged its geographic isolation and resilient economy to close its borders and largely block out Covid-19. The results spoke for themselves. While other countries faced prolonged lockdowns and overwhelmed hospital systems, the majority of Australians enjoyed large public gatherings, sporting events and open societies. The backbone of this business-as-usual way of life has been a strict limit on international arrivals and a government-run quarantine system. Together, these policies have kept the virus at bay, but separated thousands of Australian families in the process, and made it near impossible for stranded citizens overseas to return. Making the situation worse, Australia's limit on international arrivals has been cut from a little over 6,000 to about 3,000 passengers a week as of July 14, crushing the hopes of roughly 34,000 Australians who have registered with the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade as being stuck overseas and wanting to come home. The decision was made by the national cabinet, after recurring breaches in the quarantine system caused the highly infectious Delta variant to seep into communities across the country, exposing the fragility of Australia's main line of defense. The new caps will be reviewed on August 31, but the federal government has indicated they will likely be in place until the end of the year. In the coming weeks, international airlines will be forced to bump thousands of Australians already booked on their flights due to the cap reduction. Some may even suspend passenger flights entirely, as they struggle to make the journeys commercially viable, the Board of Airline Representatives of Australia (BARA) said. "A number of international airlines have told BARA they're reviewing their schedules, and reductions to the frequency of their flights into Australia is likely," said Barry Abrams, the organization's executive director.<br/>

Boeing said Tuesday that it would temporarily slow production of the 787 Dreamliner after it identified new work that needed to be done on the troubled wide-body jet. The slowdown will cause the company to fall short of a target production rate of five 787s per month as it conducts inspections and completes the extra work, Boeing said. Boeing also said that it expected to deliver less than half of the Dreamliners in its inventory this year, a shift from April when its CE, Dave Calhoun, said the company would hand over the majority by 2022. “We will continue to take the necessary time to ensure Boeing airplanes meet the highest quality prior to delivery,” the manufacturer said in a statement. “Across the enterprise, our teams remain focused on safety and integrity as we drive stability, first-time quality and productivity in our operations.” Boeing had stopped delivering the 787 last year amid quality concerns related to shims used where parts of the plane’s fuselage, or main body, are joined. The company resumed deliveries in March, but said in May that it had stopped again after the FAA said it was unconvinced by Boeing’s inspection methods, which relied on using a statistical analysis to identify where inspections were needed. Boeing said on Tuesday that discussions with the FAA are ongoing.<br/>

Universal Hydrogen, a US firm that aims to do for clean fuel what Nespresso did for coffee, is poised to announce preliminary hydrogen deals with airlines including Icelandair as it looks at a possible listing as early as next year. Europe's Airbus has captured attention with a pledge to introduce 100-seat hydrogen-powered airliners by 2035. But founded by former Airbus technology chief Paul Eremenko, Universal Hydrogen aims to speed up the introduction of hydrogen for smaller regional airplanes to 2025 by using fuel cells fed by modular hydrogen capsules to replace their turboprop systems. "It is a $2.5b market on a regional scale," Eremenko estimated in an interview. Universal Hydrogen is one of a cluster of companies flocking to efforts to decarbonise aviation and says it is trying to solve a crucial problem with the clean but highly flammable fuel: how to connect production to airports where it is needed. "We are the Nespresso capsule of hydrogen. We don't grow the coffee and we don't make the coffee-maker," Eremenko told Reuters, referring to the Nestle division (NESN.S) whose capsules revolutionised premium coffee-drinking habits. In order to kickstart demand, Nespresso offered coffee makers while encouraging others to build compatible machines. "It is a similar model for us."<br/>