Four ways to reduce your inland supply chain’s GHG footprint

14 September 2023

To meet the EU’s goal to cut greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by at least 55% by 2030 and keep the continent on course to becoming climate neutral by 2040, businesses all over Europe are under huge pressure to decarbonise.

As a result, finding simple and effective ways to decarbonise the supply chain is high on the strategic agenda and inland supply chains are considered a key target for GHG emissions reductions.

In this article, we explore four ways to reduce the GHG footprint of your inland supply chain.

Maersk ship with many container in an ocean

Decarbonising transport

For many companies, transport is an area they can focus on decarbonising first, as there are clear routes to make demonstrable progress. Namely, low emission fuel alternatives and electrification, supported by energy from 100% renewable sources, are set to play a significant role in heavy-duty trucking. This will help lower supply chain GHG emissions while maintaining seamless transportation of goods across the world.

In terms of biofuel and electrification, monumental effort and collaboration are needed across the entire supply chain ecosystem to get the industry where it needs to be.

Maersk is pioneering the movement and has made significant investments in container vessels that use methanol fuel. The first vessel is set to go into operation later this year, with a further 24 ordered and ready to be deployed on the ocean within the next few years. Now, our sustainable strategy is truly is being brought into action, we're ready to scale inland.

On the trucking front, Maersk recently purchased 25 state-of-the-art Volvo FH electric trucks in Germany to be delivered in Q4 2023 and Q1 2024. The e-trucks will be used for local deliveries in strategic locations, including the Bremerhaven gateway port, to create synergies and develop our existing network of low to very-low GHG emission inland solutions for customers. Furthermore, we’re partnering with vendors in Scandinavia to offer similar products in Denmark, Norway and Sweden, with much more to come.

It’s still early days in e-trucking, and the investment sums needed to purchase e-trucks are significantly higher compared to diesel trucks. By leading the charge towards electrification, we want to inspire other industry players and partners to follow suit and accelerate the transition to a low-carbon future.

Julia Heil

Head of Energy Transition Execution at Maersk

Illustration of a laptop with statistics on it

Gaining visibility through technology

Collecting, calculating and managing the necessary data for emissions reporting are complex tasks. The right technology is necessary to simplify this process.

With technology that can track and consolidate emissions data across all carriers and modes of transport, it becomes much easier to analyse the GHG emissions of your inland supply chain. For instance, you can use this holistic visibility to understand how to implement decarbonisation logistics decisions and make the most impactful changes.

To see how technology is enabling emissions reductions in inland logistics, visit the Maersk Emissions Dashboard.

Striking the right partnerships

Confronting climate change is a shared responsibility; achieving ambitious decarbonisation targets is only possible through active collaboration.

That means navigating issues that are often so complex and multifaceted that no one business can solve them alone. Through partnerships, businesses benefit from diverse perspectives, resources and expertise, all helping address these issues and forge new paths.

For more on how partnerships can strengthen your decarbonisation efforts, read the article.

Accelerating the process

Meeting the European Commission’s GHG emissions targets will be a mammoth task for businesses of every shape and size.

To give your organisation the best foundation for success, it’s important to work with a logistics partner whose decarbonisation goals align with yours. At Maersk, we’ve brought forward our net-zero target by a decade to 2040, and we’re constantly investing in decarbonisation solutions in order to provide 100% sustainable solutions to customers by 2040.

By choosing to partner with Maersk, you get to leverage our extensive network of inland assets, our deep technology and integrated logistics expertise, as well as our powerful suite of digital tools, all from a single source. Partnering with Maersk enables you to take steps towards decarbonising your inland supply chain today.