Malta International Airport unveils plans to reach net zero carbon target by 2050

Malta International Airport (MIA) has announced its Net Zero Carbon Plan, created with the aim of reaching its net zero carbon target by 2050.

Addressing the press conference held on Friday (today), MIA’s Head of Sustainability and Analytics, Justine Baldacchino unveiled its plan.

It outlines the company’s decarbonisation strategy and sets ambitious targets for the airport to reach carbon neutrality by 2025 and achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Ms Baldacchino remarked that the company has already made significant strides in its sustainability journey, reducing emissions within its control by 31 per cent since 2015 and climbing the rungs of Airports Council International’s Airport Carbon Accreditation programme.

“As we work towards our next two milestones to achieving carbon neutrality next year and a 65 per cent reduction in emissions by 2030, MIA will be employing the two-pronged approach of investing in the production of clean energy,” she continued.

Furthermore, she noted that the airport will be seeking to improve the energy efficiency of its facilities.

To this end, the company is currently investing in a number of large-scale projects, including the expansion of its renewable energy portfolio.

This is being done through the introduction of new photovoltaic farms both at landside and airside, the upgrading of heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems within all airport buildings, and the conversion of all airfield lighting to more efficient LED alternatives.

Furthermore, MIA CEO Alan Borg also announced that the airport had welcomed 4.1 million passengers, “in its best-performing first half to date.”

During the first six months of the year, passenger movements registered a year-on-year increase of 18.4 per cent, outperforming Southern European peers. This includes Italy, Greece and Spain.

Figures indicate that March was the fastest-growing month of the period, surpassing 2023 levels by 30 per cent, followed by February (an increase of 25 per cent) and January (an increase of 23 per cent).

The company also reported increased income from both its aviation and non-aviation segments, with revenue for the first half of the year totalling €66.4 million and a net profit of €22.1 million.

“We are entering the second half of 2024 in a solid financial position, one which has enabled out company to distribute its highest interim dividend to date to shareholders and continue to invest in the development of MIA,” Mr Borg said.

Earlier, stock broker Paul Bonello had alleged that a trade involving the listed company’s shares involved some form of insider trading. In response, MIA said that it has a “significant track record of communication with the market over time.”

Furthemore, it added that it regularly issued monthly announcements on passenger numbers, quarterly financial statements, and company updates ahead of board meetings scheduled to consider the approval of financial statements and the deceleration of dividends.

Additionally, it also pointed out that it had previously disclosed that the Board of Directors would consider the proposal of an interim dividend at Thursday’s board meeting.

More information about MIA’s Net Zero Carbon Plan can be found here.