Oil producer Cepsaand IAG’s Spanish unit are forming a partnership to develop clean fuel for airlines. Cepsa will develop sustainable aviation biofuels made from waste and recycled oils, among other products, to supply Iberia, according to a statement Monday. The deal also includes the development of other energy sources such as hydrogen and electricity to operate aircrafts and ground fleets. Cepsa, the Spanish oil producer controlled by Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund and the Carlyle Group, is scrambling to develop its clean-energy business and catch up with larger rivals across Europe. As part of its green push, it restructured its management late last year with the appointment of Maarten Wetselaar, who was hired from Royal Dutch Shell. Last week, Cepsa tapped former BP executive Carlos Barrasa as director of the new commercial and clean energies business. Iberia Express, a low-cost carrier, will also benefit from the agreement with Cepsa. The two carriers have committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2050 and to operate a minimum of 10% of their flights with so-called clean fuels by 2030. <br/>
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Qantas has announced it will cut its planned domestic flight capacity by another 10 per cent through to the end of March, due to Western Australia’s delayed border reopening. The decision means that Qantas’ overall domestic capacity forecast for Q1 of the 2022 calendar year will fall to 60% of its pre-COVID capacity, down dramatically from the 102% initially forecast late last year. The new cuts are in addition to those announced earlier this month, when Qantas announced that it had been forced to slash flight capacity by over 30% through to March to “better match travel demand” amid Australia’s ongoing COVID outbreak. It also comes as Western Australia Premier Mark McGowan announced late on Thursday that his government would no longer reopen its domestic and international borders on 5 February as previously planned. McGowan said the decision was made due to the Omicron variant being far more transmissible than its predecessors. No new date has been set for the border opening.<br/>