It’s a sustainability first for global aviation

Etihad Airways has raised $1.2 billion with a loan linked to environmental, social and governance – or ESG - targets

- from reducing carbon emissions

- to improving corporate governance

- and advancing female participation

Etihad says the Greenliner programme aims to improve the “environmental footprint of aviation” – with green financing as a key part of that strategy,

and that this was the first sustainability-linked loan in global aviation tied to ESG targets.

The airline has committed to a target of net zero carbon emissions by 2050.

Last year, it raised $600 million in "transition" sukuk, or Islamic bonds, which are used by companies to switch to more environmentally sustainable operations.

It also raised an over 100-million-euro loan in 2019 tied to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.