Societe Generale Joins Leading Banks to Introduce Pegasus Guidelines for Measuring Aviation Portfolio Emissions

Societe Generale Joins Leading Banks to Introduce Pegasus Guidelines for Measuring Aviation Portfolio Emissions

(IN BRIEF) Societe Generale, alongside BNP Paribas, Citi, Crédit Agricole CIB, and Standard Chartered, in collaboration with RMI (Rocky Mountain Institute), has developed the pioneering Pegasus Guidelines. These guidelines offer a voluntary climate-aligned finance framework tailored for the aviation sector, aiding banks in consistently measuring and disclosing the emissions intensity and climate alignment of their aviation lending portfolios compared to a 1.5°C scenario. With the aviation industry contributing significantly to global CO2 emissions, the Pegasus Guidelines aim to support a transition towards sustainable aviation fuels (SAF) and other low-carbon technologies. The guidelines, built on collaboration and existing standards, facilitate standardized assessments, data access, and annual emissions intensity disclosure, fostering transparency while maintaining client confidentiality.

(PRESS RELEASE) PARIS, 6-Apr-2024 — /EuropaWire/ — Societe Generale, along with four other leading banks — BNP Paribas, Citi, Crédit Agricole CIB, and Standard Chartered — have developed, in partnership with RMI (Rocky Mountain Institute), a first-of-its-kind framework to enable banks to measure and disclose their aviation lending portfolios’ emissions in a consistent and comprehensive manner.

The Pegasus Guidelines is the first voluntary climate-aligned finance framework for the aviation sector. The Guidelines are compatible with the Net-Zero Banking Alliance (NZBA) guidance and designed to help banks independently measure and disclose the emissions intensity and/or climate alignment of their aviation lending portfolios compared to a 1.5°C scenario.

The aviation industry contributes 2.5% of global CO2 emissions and is the fastest growing transportation sector. The industry’s success in transitioning to a low-carbon economy will rely on a significant ramp up of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), as well as further development of hydrogen and battery-electric propulsion and fleet modernization. Financial institutions can play an important role in supporting a range of solutions for the sector through financing the technologies, projects, and companies that can contribute to a low-carbon future.

The aviation sector’s ability to decarbonize is dependent on driving progress across a set of key technology levers—some of which they have the ability to influence directly, and some of which will require collaboration across sectors and with policymakers. Underpinning the Pegasus Guidelines is an understanding that financial institutions and airlines must work together to foster solutions that can help the industry decarbonize, together with policymakers, customers, airports, fuel producers, and NGOs. Collaboration with banks, investors, and policymakers will be particularly important to accelerate the production of SAF—the most significant lever of decarbonization for the sector.

Yann Sonnallier, Global Head of Aviation Finance at Societe Generale said: “Societe Generale is extremely proud to be a founder and initial user of the Pegasus Guidelines, and of all the collective work done since 2022 to establish this reference methodology and framework, consistent with NZBA requirements, and at the benefit of all aviation stakeholders.”

The Pegasus Guidelines were designed by RMI and shaped by a core working group of leading financial institutions and draw upon existing standards including those of the Science-Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and the International Civil Aviation Organization’s Carbon Offsetting and Reduction Scheme for International Aviation (ICAO CORSIA). Pro bono legal advice was provided by Watson Farley & Williams throughout development.

Similar to frameworks completed for steel (Sustainable Steel Principles), shipping (Poseidon Principles), and aluminum (Sustainable Aluminum Finance Framework), the financial institutions that leverage the Pegasus Guidelines will be equipped to:

• Perform a standardized assessment to calculate their portfolio emissions intensity and alignment with 1.5°C climate scenario
• Use a consistent approach to accessing high-quality and credible data
• Disclose their aviation portfolio emissions intensity and/or alignment results annually for transparency, while keeping client information confidential

The Pegasus Guidelines are available for free and can be downloaded here.

Other banks are encouraged to take up this methodology.

Media Contacts:

Lucie Le Bouffo
lucie.le-bouffo@socgen.com
Tel: +33 (0)1 57 29 64 90

Benjamin Fayol
benjamin.fayol@socgen.com
Tel: +33 (0)1 42 13 08 11

SOURCE: Societe Generale