ABU DHABI, 15th May, 2023 (WAM) -- First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) is hosting a one-day summit that brings together aviation thought leaders and industry stakeholders to explore economic development opportunities as the sector transitions to net-zero. The Aviation Sector Summit, held in collaboration with Boston Consulting Group (BCG), will consist of talks, panel discussions, and presentations that focus on overcoming challenges related to decarbonization and unlocking the economic and development opportunities arising from the transition to a net-zero economy.
FAB, which recently announced that it would set financed emissions reduction targets across oil and gas, power generation, and aviation, believes that the Summit will help the global aviation sector achieve its net-zero ambition. The summit will examine how the aviation sector will play a crucial role in supporting the UAE's objective to achieve net-zero by 2050. Participants will include aviation stakeholders from both the public and private sectors, with speakers such as Adel Abdullah Ali, CEO of Air Arabia, and Nili Gilbert, Vice Chairwoman Carbon Direct. FAB's senior leadership, including Martin Tricaud, Group Head of Investment Banking, Sara Al Binali, Group Head of Corporate, Commercial, and International Banking, and Shargiil Bashir, Chief Sustainability Officer, will also attend.
Martin Tricaud, Group Head of Investment Banking at FAB, said, “The decarbonisation of the global aviation sector is not optional but necessary if the world is to reach its collective climate objectives. Here in the UAE, the aviation and tourism industries are key pillars of the economy representing 13% of national GDP – so there’s a unique opportunity for the entire ecosystem to collaborate and to drive sustainable outcomes that will shape the entire global economy. At FAB, we’re playing our part by financing fleet renewals with next-generation aircraft; we’re supporting the widespread adoption of Sustainable Aviation Fuel; and we’re encouraging our aviation clients to use high-quality offsets for residual emissions. We’re fully committed to supporting and investing in the aviation sector as it embarks on its journey towards carbon neutrality by 2050.”
Sara Al Binali, Group Head of Corporate, Commercial, and International Banking at FAB, said, “Collaboration is the word that best describes what’s needed to achieve net-zero by 2050 and at FAB we’re actively collaborating with stakeholders across the aviation value chain to unlock the economic possibilities of net-zero, together. We believe that the aviation sector has the potential to be a catalyst of the UAE’s net-zero ambitions – and as the sector transitions to a more sustainable future, we stand ready to provide the strategic advisory and funding necessary to help place the industry on a greener flight path.”
Pelayo Losada, Managing Director and Partner at BCG, said: “Building strong ecosystem partnerships is crucial for the aviation industry to achieve its net zero emissions goals. Collaboration across the entire value chain, from airlines to airports, governments to tech innovators, is essential to address the complex challenges of decarbonising the aviation industry. We are proud of our role as knowledge partners in this summit as we believe it will contribute to catalysing collaboration and transformation across the industry.”
FAB has a strong track record of climate action through its innovative sustainable financing solutions and advisory services – and has set a target of USD 75 billion for the period of 2022 to 2030, of which 15 billion was achieved by Q1’23.
FAB continues to lead through proactive engagement and partnerships with customers, clients, and the UAE government and regulators, to enable them to move faster towards a low carbon economy.
The FAB Aviation Summit is the first in a series of planned sector focused summits to be held in 2023 where FAB will also hold similar summits for oil and gas, power generation, and construction.