Freight forwarder DHL Global Forwarding and ocean carrier Hapag-Lloyd are furthering their sustainability goals with an agreement to use advanced biofuels for DHL shipments, the companies said today.
As a first step, Hapag-Lloyd will ship 18,000 twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) of DHL’s volume using the sustainable fuels, which the companies say are based on raw biological materials, such as used cooking oil and other waste products. That material is used to manufacture a fatty acid methyl ester (FAME), which is then mixed with varying proportions of low sulfur fuel oil. Compared to standard fuels, this pure biofuel product lowers greenhouse gas emissions by more than 80%, the companies said.
The companies’ initial effort is equivalent to a reduction of 14,000 tons of “well-to-wake” carbon dioxide emissions, they also said.
The project is in line with DHL’s and Hapag-Lloyd’s sustainability strategy to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 and 2045, respectively. Both companies say they are committed to providing sustainable logistics solutions and access to sustainable fuels that will support decarbonizing the industry.
