Venice airport focuses on hydrogen for sustainability
Airbus, Snam and SAVE have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to promote the use of hydrogen as a sustainable energy vector in the airport sector and in air transport. The three companies will share a common strategy with the aim of investing in reducing greenhouse gas emissions in airport operations, starting with the Marco Polo airport in Venice, managed by SAVE. The collaboration through the companies will be articulated on several ambitions, starting from future needs and technological options, leading to the identification of technical and implementation solutions that will be tested in pilot projects and then subsequently extended on a large scale.
“The collaboration with Airbus and SAVE – he declared Marco Alverà, CEO of Snam – aims to accompany one of the most important airports in Italy, in a city that symbolizes our country in the world, towards the goal of zero emissions. The initiative is part of our commitment to decarbonise the sector and the airport is in line with the planning that we would like to develop within the constitution of the Venice World Capital of Sustainability Foundation, of which Snam is one of the founding members. Hydrogen is a key solution to foster environmental sustainability and the competitiveness of airports, ports, heavy and maritime transport and of all industrial sectors that are difficult to decarbonise. Snam is committed to investing in technology, in grid development and in integrated projects to encourage the development of a national hydrogen supply chain, accelerating the energy transition “.
“The partnership agreement with Snam and Airbus is a fundamental step in the path taken by our Group with a view to ecological transition and decarbonisation of the managed airports” – he declared Monica Scarpa, CEO of the SAVE Group – “The specificity and value of this project of study and application of hydrogen in the aviation sector, consist in particular in the sharing of skills that cover the entire supply chain, from production to storage, to the supply, up to the use for commercial aeronautics of this fuel which can make a great contribution to the energy challenge of our planet. For the Venice airport, it effectively means the commitment to reduce harmful emissions, in harmony with our city’s goal of proposing itself internationally as the capital of sustainability “.
The engineering and design studies envisaged by the agreement will include the technological infrastructure for the hydrogen refueling of aircraft and hydrogen airport vehicles, with the possibility of evaluating both effective solutions also for energy needs and accessibility to the airport, making the entire airport system with zero emissions. An intermodal synergy with road and rail transport could also be activated. Finally, Snam, SAVE and Airbus will be able to jointly develop innovative technologies and “end-to-end” solutions based on hydrogen and aimed at both the Venice airport and other potential users, also participating in grant programs and tenders at national level and European. The agreement will eventually be the subject of subsequent binding agreements that the parties will define in compliance with the applicable legislation and regulatory profiles.