More than 14 million euros from IDEA for Iberia Airport Services
Iberia Airport Services (IBAS) has received 14.2 million euros from the Institute for Energy Diversification and Saving (IDEA) to renew the ground equipment with which it provides aircraft handling services at 29 Spanish airports.
This concession is part of the aid programme for efficient and sustainable mobility and “endorses” the solvency of this Iberia division’s project to advance in the decarbonisation of airport services, through the electrification of ground equipment.
In its bid submitted to Aena for the new third-party ground handling services licences, in the ramp handling category, at 41 Spanish airports, the airline is committed to achieving net zero emissions by 2025.
To this end, it plans to invest more than 100 million euros in renewing its 7,000 aircraft and electrifying 80 % of its fleet in the coming years, Iberia said in a statement on Sunday.
During the last year, and to meet the requirements of the new Aena handling tender, IBAS has strengthened its collaboration with the main manufacturers of ground equipment in the sector to lead tests with electrical equipment at airports such as Mallorca, Malaga, Barcelona and Madrid.
The incorporation of this equipment “means qualitative and quantitative improvements”, both for its lower impact on the environment, as emissions, noise and vibrations are reduced; as well as for IBAS workers, as its handling is easier and its technology provides greater safety, the airline has detailed.
The company pointed out that IBAS was the first handling operator in the world to use the remote-controlled push back tractors – known as push back Mototok – on regional aircraft of up to 100 seats.
