DHL to Encourage Carriers to Reduce, Report Emissions with New Green Certification Program
Logistics giant Deutsche Post DHL Group announced today the launch of DHL Green Carrier Certification, a new program aimed at reducing the company’s and its customers’ carbon footprints by rewarding its road transport subcontractors for their efforts to become more sustainable.
The new program, developed jointly by DHL divisions Express, Freight and Supply Chain, is designed to assess the green performance of partners that provide the company with ground transport services, in order to enable DHL to effectively manage relationships and reduce emissions. Under the program, carriers will be expected to have an environmental or sustainability strategy in place, measure their carbon footprint, and to be transparent with their data. The information will be obtained via a dedicated online platform and verified through an internal audit process.
Subcontractors will be ranked according to categories including ‘Pass’, ‘Good’, ‘Excellent’ and ‘Outstanding,’ which will provide a decision point for future transport tenders and assignments. DHL’s contract logistics provider is already rolling out the program in selected regions, with a worldwide rollout expected in 2022, and DHL Express has included the certification as part of the tendering process for its ground-based transport.
The new certification program follows the launch earlier this year of DHL’s Sustainability Roadmap, which include a series of decarbonization and environmental sustainability commitments encompassing the introduction of more ambitious climate targets and linking executive compensation to ESG goals. According to DHL, ground transport accounts for 21 per cent of the Group’s total CO2e emissions.
Andreas Mündel, Senior Vice President Strategy & Operation Programs at Deutsche Post DHL Group, said:
“Decarbonizing trade lanes and supply chains is a joint effort and has to be built on transparency and collaboration. With our DHL Green Carrier Certification, we have implemented uniform and transparent criteria when it comes to cooperating with our ground carriers going forward. This approach brings us all another step closer to our ambitious goal of true climate-neutral transport.”