Category: Environmental News (Page 8 of 49)

Air New Zealand announces BETA’s ALIA launch aircraft for Next Gen Aircraft program

December 7, 2023 / WIL BALDWIN

Air New Zealand (NZX: AIR) has today announced the ALIA as the airline’s first purchase of a next generation aircraft in its Mission Next Gen Aircraft program.

Designed by electric aerospace company BETA Technologies, the battery-powered all-electric aircraft is expected to join Air New Zealand’s fleet in 2026. Air New Zealand is purchasing the conventional take-off and landing version of the ALIA.

The announcement follows an 18-month period of evaluation and diligence by Air New Zealand. Through the airline’s Mission Next Gen Aircraft program, it sought and received ideas and insights from 30 organisations, selecting four partners to work closely with on its goal of launching commercial flights using next generation aircraft in 2026. BETA’s ALIA is the first commercial order in the program.

Air New Zealand will initially operate the aircraft as a cargo only service in partnership with New Zealand Post, on a route being selected through an expressions of interest (EOI) process with airports across Aotearoa.

Nestle cuts ocean transport emissions with Maersk ECO Delivery solution

December 6, 2023 / WIL BALDWIN

Copenhagen, Denmark/Vevey, Switzerland, December 6, 2023 – Nestle SA (SIX Swiss: NESN), the world’s largest food and beverage company, is cutting its ocean logistics greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by using the Maersk AS (OTC: AMKBY) ECO Delivery solution for 100% of its ocean containers shipped by Maersk in 2023, with an option to extend this agreement into 2024 and beyond. The seaborne emissions of these transports are being reduced by over 80% compared to the usage of conventional fossil fuels.

With ECO Delivery, Maersk customers can handle ocean transports completely with certified green fuels* like second generation biofuel based on waste feedstocks. These fuels are replacing conventional fossil fuels on container ships in Maersk’s fleet. The corresponding GHG emission savings are confirmed to the customers with a certificate.

Nestlé’s goal is a 50% reduction of its total emissions by 2030 and to be net zero by 2050. With scope 3 emissions being the major part of the overall emissions, ECO Delivery is an effective solution for abatement of scope 3 emissions caused by ocean transports. Nestlé’s water beverages and Nespresso have been two pioneering brands using ECO Delivery since 2021.

Today many more of Nestlé’s up to 2,000 brands are reaching the end consumers with a much smaller GHG footprint thanks to Maersk’s ECO Delivery. Furthermore, Nestlé is one of Maersk’s partners in piloting also low GHG emission landside transports, e.g. by rail or electric trucks.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release may contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including expected delivery dates. Such statements are based on current expectations and projections about our future results, prospects and opportunities and are not guarantees of future performance. Such statements will not be updated unless required by law. Actual results and performance may differ materially from those expressed or forecasted in forward-looking statements due to a number of factors, including those discussed in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Rolls-Royce extends sponsorship of Technology Lab in Friedrichshafen

December 6, 2023 / WIL BALDWIN

Friedrichshafen, Germany, December 6, 2023 – Rolls-Royce Holdings PLC (London: RR) is to prolong its sponsorship of the Friedrichshafen Wissenswerkstatt e.V. (technology lab) and has committed to continuing funding for another five years. That means that the Wissenswerkstatt Friedrichshafen will benefit from a total of 250,000 euros up to 2028. It offers technology courses for children and teenagers from the age of five to eighteen at two locations in Friedrichshafen.

The courses given in the Wissenswerkstatt are not just designed to impart knowledge, but to highlight the enjoyable side of technology. In a relaxed atmosphere, the participants, working in groups of up to 14 or individually, engage in practical projects such as ‘Voltage from Veg – the Potato Battery’, or ‘The Internal Combustion Engine’s, or ‘Robotics – When Machines Do What I Say’.

One contribution Rolls-Royce Power Systems already made to the Wissenswerkstatt is an mtu Series 1600 engine on which participants learn about how an internal combustion engine is structured and works.

The general members’ meeting of the Wissenswerkstatt voted for Martin Stocker, head of training at Rolls-Royce Power Systems, to take up a seat on the board of the organization, which he will be retaining voluntarily in the future.

Forward-Looking Statements

Airbus and BMW Group launch Quantum Computing Competition

December 6, 2023 / WIL BALDWIN

Santa Clara, California, December 6, 2023 – Airbus Group SE (Paris: AIR) and BMW Group (Xetra: BMWG) launch a global Quantum Computing Challenge entitled “The Quantum Mobility Quest” to tackle the most pressing challenges in aviation and automotive that have remained insurmountable for classical computers. This challenge is the first-of-its-kind, bringing together two global industry leaders to harness quantum technologies for real-world industrial applications, unlocking the potential to forge more efficient, sustainable and safer solutions for the future of transportation.

Quantum computing has the potential to significantly enhance computational power and to enable the most complex operations that challenge even today’s best computers. In particular, for data-driven industries like the transportation sector, this emerging technology could play a crucial role in simulating various industrial and operational processes, opening up opportunities to shape future mobility products and services.

Challenge candidates are invited to select one or more problem statements: improved aerodynamics design with quantum solvers, future automated mobility with quantum machine learning, more sustainable supply chain with quantum optimisation, and enhanced corrosion inhibition with quantum simulation. Additionally, candidates can put forward their own quantum technologies with the potential to develop native apps yet to be explored in the transportation sector.

The challenge is hosted by The Quantum Insider (TQI) and divided into two parts, a four-month phase where participants will develop a theoretical framework for one of the given statements, and a second phase during which selected finalists will implement and benchmark their solutions. Amazon Web Services (AWS) provides candidates with an opportunity to run their algorithms on their Amazon Braket quantum computing service.

A jury composed of world-leading quantum experts will team up with experts from Airbus, BMW Group, and AWS to evaluate submitted proposals and award one winning-team with a €30,000 prize in each of the five challenges, by the end of 2024.

Registration opens today, and submissions will be accepted from mid-January through April 30, 2024 here: www.thequantuminsider.com/quantum-challenge.

Forward-Looking Statements

Air Canada makes Europe easy to explore by adding rail booking

December 5, 2023 / WIL BALDWIN

Montreal, December 5, 2023, CNW – Air Canada (Toronto: AC) today announced new air-to-rail booking options for customers to connect at European airports with four major passenger rail systems, making it convenient to explore the continent. Through new railway and distribution partnerships, Air Canada customers, when purchasing flights, can now also easily book onward rail trips to a multitude of destinations throughout France, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria to create a seamless travel itinerary.

With the launch of Air Canada’s European intermodal initiative, customers can now, while purchasing an Air Canada flight, at the same time book rail travel from European airports. Through the airline’s partnership with Lufthansa Express Rail Product and new collaborations with AccesRail & WorldTicket, customers can use a streamlined booking process to create a seamless travel itinerary that connects their flight with trips on trains operated by France’s TGV-SNCF Voyageurs, Germany’s Deutsche Bahn, Swiss Federal Railways or ÖBB, the national railway of Austria.

For added convenience, customers can check in for all segments of their trip prior to departure, avoiding the need to obtain a train ticket at the station. As well, customers experiencing any flight disruption will have both their air and rail segments rebooked to provide peace of mind.

Wing-to-Rail Connections

France: Sold under codeshare on SNCF Voyageurs, customers can purchase a single ticket that connects them at France’s Charles De Gaulle airport in Paris to up to 22 SNCF Voyageurs high-speed rail destinations across France, including Nantes, Bordeaux, Marseille and Strasbourg.
Germany: Air Canada is building on its existing intermodal rail connections with Lufthansa Express Rail which provides access to up to 24 stations on Star Alliance intermodal partner Deutsche Bahn within Germany from Frankfurt airport. With today’s announcement, customers now have expanded options to reach more than 5,600 railway stations across the country using Deutsche Bahn’s Rail and Fly products from Frankfurt and Munich. As of August 2022, Deutsche Bahn became an Intermodal Partner of Star Alliance, the first non-airline partner of any of the major alliances., and Air Canada plans to launch codeshare on the German rail in 2024 via the Lufthansa express rail product, offering customers added benefits.
Switzerland: Customers flying to Zurich or Geneva on Air Canada can now connect at the airport to Swiss Federal Railways trains and reach up to 11 stations throughout Switzerland, including such popular destinations as Basel and Lucerne.
Austria: ÖBB services are now also available from Vienna airport to up to nine railway stations across Austria, including Linz, Salzburg and Innsbruck.

Additional details, including about the simple booking process, available routings and destinations, and other important information are available at www.aircanada.com.

Canton of Lucerne, Lucerne Transport Association, and SBB sign perspective

December 5, 2023 / WIL BALDWIN

The canton of Lucerne, the VVL and the SBB today signed the “Overall Perspective for Lucerne” and named a regional double-decker train the “Luzern”. The christened vehicle is the RV-Dosto RABe 511 016. The train christening symbolizes an important measure from an overall perspective: From December 10, 2023, double-decker trains with significantly more seats will run on the RegioExpress connection between Olten and Lucerne (new RE24). as before.

The trains on the various corridors around Lucerne are very busy during peak hours and no additional trains can arrive and depart from Lucerne station. In order to be able to expand capacity despite the busy rail infrastructure, the RegioExpress trains between Olten and Lucerne will run double-decker on weekdays until 8 p.m. and occasionally on weekends from the timetable change on December 10, 2023. The double-decker train with 535 seats instead of the previous single-decker Flirt with 324 seats (in double traction) significantly increases the capacity on the line and offers passengers more space and comfort. There will also be more space on the S1 after the timetable change: more trains will run with double traction instead of single traction between Baar and Lucerne.

Together for strong public transport

The overall perspective is a work program by the SBB, the VVL and the canton of Lucerne with the aim of strengthening public transport and making it even more customer-friendly. It is the result of intensive cooperation between the three partners and is based on the overall perspective for Central Switzerland that was adopted in 2016.

The overall perspective includes measures up to the 2035 expansion horizon with short and medium-term effects and builds on offer concepts that have already been decided. With an overall perspective, the partners agree on measures for integrated mobility and area development, which in particular coordinate ongoing planning with one another. The three partners – SBB, VVL and Canton – do this in five fields of action: passenger transport, transport hubs, internal development, freight transport and logistics as well as railway infrastructure and railway operational facilities.

The Lucerne through station (DBL) is anchored as a long-term project as a target image. With its local, regional and national benefits, it offers a sustainable development perspective for the greater Lucerne area and central Switzerland. The short and medium-term measures of the overall perspective as well as the fields of action mentioned above are therefore geared towards this target image.

Airbus upgrades A400M firefighter prototype kit

December 5, 2023 / WIL BALDWIN

Getafe, Spain, December 5, 2023 – Airbus Group SE (Paris: AIR) Defence and Space has conducted a new flight-test campaign of the A400M Roll-on/Roll-off firefighting prototype kit, dropping 20,000 litres of retardant and creating high concentration lines over 400 metres long on ground.

Over a period of two weeks, the A400M carried out a ground and flight-test campaign in south-western and central Spain, including six drops, three of which used red-coloured retardant and three using water.

An easy-to-install solution

This roll-on/roll-off kit does not require any modification to the aircraft and, therefore, is interchangeable to any aircraft in the A400M fleet. The water or retardant is stored in a tank in the cargo hold of the aircraft and, by using a mechanical lever, a door is opened to allow the liquid to flow out of the aircraft by gravity means through a discharge pipe. The current design of the prototype is capable of dropping 20,000 litres in a single discharge.

The tanks can be filled in less than 10 minutes using standard high-pressure pumps on ground. The A400M is characterised by its ability to take off and land on short and unpaved runways, and a wide range of air bases and airfields.

During the campaign, the 43rd Firefighting Squadron of the Spanish Air Force has been involved as technical advisors and assuring that this capability in the A400M has operational value for any potential operator.

Forward-Looking Statements

Siemens and Intel to collaborate on advanced semiconductor manufacturing

December 4, 2023 / WIL BALDWIN

Siemens AG (ADR: SIEGY), a leading technology company, and Intel Corporation (Nasdaq: INTC), one of the world’s largest semiconductor companies, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate on driving digitalization and sustainability of microelectronics manufacturing. The companies will focus on advancing future manufacturing efforts, evolving factory operations and cybersecurity, and supporting a resilient global industry ecosystem.

The MoU identifies key areas of collaboration to explore a variety of initiatives, including optimizing energy management and addressing carbon footprints across the value chain. For instance, the collaboration will explore use of “digital twins” of complex, highly capital-intensive manufacturing facilities to standardize solutions where every percentage of efficiency gained is meaningful.

The collaboration will also explore minimizing energy use through advanced modeling of natural resources and environmental footprints across the value chain. To gain more information on product-related emissions, Intel will explore product and supply chain related modeling solutions with Siemens that drive data-based insights and help the industry accelerate progress in reducing its collective footprint.

Sustainable practices across the entire semiconductor lifecycle, including design, manufacturing, operation, efficiency, and recycling, are critical for meeting growing demand for powerful, sustainable chips. Technology has the power to accelerate solutions to reduce computing-related climate impacts across the technology industry and the rest of the global economy. Automation and digitalization hold the key to addressing the challenges as the industry drives toward net-zero greenhouse gas emissions. By combining their strengths and expertise, Siemens and Intel are poised to lead the way in driving positive change.

Forward-Looking Statements

Deutsche Bahn is getting into the UEFA EURO 2024™ spirit

December 3, 2023 / WIL BALDWIN

Berlin, Germany, December 1, 2023 – Deutsche Bahn (DB) is getting into the football spirit. Thanks to special offers and more trains for Football European Championship matches, all fans and the 24 national teams will be able to travel by climate-friendly train during the upcoming UEFA EURO 2024™. DB will offer nearly 10,000 additional seats each day on ICE and Intercity trains around match days.

EUR 29.90 DB Ticket EURO 2024 to travel to UEFA EURO 2024™ matches

Anyone with a ticket to a match and traveling within Germany can purchase discounted tickets for the journey to the match and back. The DB Ticket EURO 2024 will cost EUR 29.90 per trip and can be booked at bahn.de/db-fussball-ticket beginning January 17.

For the first time, a special offer will be available to ticket holders from other European countries, too. Fans can purchase an Interrail Pass discounted by 25% for UEFA EURO 2024™, which is good for travel between Germany and 32 countries. Customers can choose from a set number of travel days on which to use the pass for travel to and from the destination as well as for unlimited travel within Germany on those days. The Interrail Pass EURO 2024 will also go on sale on January 17. More information will be available in the UEFA Event Guide as of December 2: uefa.com/euro2024/event-guide

10,000 additional seats per day

DB is expecting tens of thousands of additional passengers on trains to the venues. As part of its Strong Rail strategy, DB set the course for its fleet expansion well in advance. Thanks to these efforts, it now has a modern ICE fleet, which will grow to over 400 trains in the coming months. DB is significantly expanding its timetable during the championship period. It will use longer ICE trains and offer trains on additional days, for example. What’s more, 14 special EURO trains will run daily. 10,000 additional seats are already firmly planned into the timetable in the days around the matches. Even more will be added once the results of the EURO Final Draw for the group stage are known and the routes requiring additional capacity are identified. Additional special trains will then be planned at short notice for the final.

The additional capacity is primarily intended for late evening and overnight connections in order to offer many travel options for departures from the matches. During the tournament, DB will nearly double the number of travel options after 11 pm from the 10 venues to the 20 busiest long-distance stops.

All of the information about Deutsche Bahn’s efforts in conjunction with the 2024 UEFA European Football Championship can be found here: bahn.de/em2024.

Porter Airlines orders 25 Embraer E195-E2 aircraft

December 1, 2023 / WIL BALDWIN

Sao Jose Dos Campos, Brazil, 29th November 2023 – Porter Airlines has exercised purchase rights to place a firm order for 25 Embraer SA ADR (NYSE: ERJ) E195-E2 passenger jets, adding to their 50 existing firm orders. Porter will use the new aircraft to extend its award-winning service to destinations throughout North America. The deal, valued at US$2.1bn at list price, will be added to the Q4 backlog, and brings Porter’s orders with Embraer to 75 firm, with 25 purchase rights remaining.

Porter, the North American launch customer for Embraer’s E195-E2, has already taken delivery of 24 E195-E2’s, and recently announced new destinations including Las Vegas, Miami, San Francisco, and Los Angeles; with destinations in Mexico and the Caribbean also planned. The aircraft are currently deployed from Eastern Canada, with a focus on Toronto Pearson International Airport and Ottawa. Halifax and Montreal are also seeing new services with the E195-E2. Porter has chosen to configure the 146-seat aircraft in a comfortable 132-seat all-economy configuration, with a variety of seat pitches on offer for their guests: 36, 34, and 30 inches.

About Embraer

A global aerospace company headquartered in Brazil, Embraer has businesses in Commercial and Executive aviation, Defense & Security and Agricultural Aviation. The company designs, develops, manufactures and markets aircraft and systems, providing Services & Support to customers after-sales.

Forward-Looking Statements

Together for strong public transport

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