A global logistics leader with around 600,000 employees in 220 countries and territories, DHL Express has made a significant stride in its journey towards greener aviation logistics.
“DHL Express and World Energy, a leading SAF producer and low-carbon solutions provider, have signed a long-term strategic agreement to accelerate the decarbonization of aviation logistics through the purchase of approx. 668 million liters of Sustainable Aviation Fuel via sustainable aviation fuel certificates (SAFc),” the company announced on October 19.
According to DHL, this pioneering deal should help reduce about 1.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions over the aviation fuel lifecycle — “the equivalent to handling the approximately 77,000 annual aircraft movements of DHL Express in the Americas carbon neutrally for a full year.”
DHL describes the seven-year deal as “one of the longest and largest SAFc agreements in the aviation industry to date.”
“DHL Express is firmly dedicated to pioneering a sustainable future in aviation logistics,” said CEO of DHL Express John Pearson. “By partnering with World Energy and confirming this milestone agreement, we are taking another concrete leap towards minimizing our carbon footprint and contributing to a more sustainable future. We want to inspire more suppliers to accelerate industry-wide production and adoption of SAF.”
DHL’s sustainability efforts
DHL has already been working on reducing its environmental impact well before this deal. Their Sustainability Roadmap, introduced in 2021, entails a series of initiatives aimed at decarbonization and environmental sustainability, including the establishment of more ambitious climate objectives and linking executive compensation to ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) goals.
A pivotal target within this roadmap is the use of at least 30% sustainable aviation fuel blending for all air transport by 2030. The company also aims to invest up to €7 billion in sustainable technologies and fuels within the same time period.
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Last year, in March, DHL Express signed deals with Neste and BP that would provide the logistics giant with over 800 million liters of SAF over a five-year period, describing the deals as “two of the largest-ever sustainable aviation fuel deals.”
These two deals, DHL said, would result in CO2 savings “estimated to be equivalent to annual greenhouse gas emissions of approx. 400,000 passenger cars.”
The company also recently revealed its involvement in a collaborative effort to develop and test a novel system for tracking and reporting emissions reductions in air travel through the use of SAF.
Editor’s Note: The opinions expressed here by the authors are their own, not those of Impakter.com — In the Featured Photo: Airbus A300B4-622R(F) ‘D-AEAD’ DHL Express. Featured Photo Credit: Alan Wilson/CC BY-SA 2.0 DEED.
