Five highlights shaping DHL’s path to net-zero in 2025

We know that decarbonizing logistics isn’t about a single solution. It’s about tackling emissions across air, sea, road, and infrastructure – often in parallel, often in places where change is hardest to implement. Some initiatives take years to scale, others start as pilots, and all require close collaboration across industries.

Looking back at 2025, these five selected examples represent only part of a much broader set of actions across DHL. Together, they illustrate how selected decarbonization measures are being implemented across different parts of our logistics network.

Air freight plays a vital role in global trade – and it’s also one of the most carbon-intensive parts of logistics. That’s why we’ve been investing in sustainable aviation fuel since 2021. In 2025, we took one of our biggest steps yet, signing a multi-year agreement with Phillips 66 for more than 240,000 metric tons of SAF.

Produced in California and primarily serving our US West Coast operations, the fuel is expected to reduce lifecycle (well-to-wheel) greenhouse gas emissions by around 737,000 metric tons over three years, compared with conventional jet fuel. For us, it marked a major move from early adoption toward real scale – and a sign of how partnerships can accelerate change where it matters most.

Ocean freight moves the majority of goods worldwide, making maritime decarbonization a critical piece of the puzzle. In 2025, we partnered with CMA CGM to purchase 8,800 metric tons of sustainable marine fuel (SMF) in the form of second-generation biofuel made from used cooking oil (UCOME).

That switch enables an estimated reduction of around 25,000 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions in the full fuel lifecycle basis , compared with conventional marine fuel. It’s a practical example of how collaboration across the shipping ecosystem can help push low-carbon solutions into everyday operations.

While electric vehicles work well for many delivery routes, long-haul transport relies on a broader mix of solutions. That’s why we’ve been actively testing hydrogen-powered trucks across Europe, North America, and Asia Pacific – and in 2025, expanded that work into the Middle East.

Following a memorandum of understanding with Hyperview in Saudi Arabia, we began preparations for a hydrogen truck pilot aligned with Saudi Vision 2030. Alongside vehicle testing, the project includes a feasibility study for hydrogen infrastructure – a necessary step towards making lower-emission logistics solutions viable in emerging markets.

The last mile is where logistics meets everyday life – and where decarbonization can have an immediate impact. In 2025, Germany took a major step forward when we announced the purchase of 2,400 new electric vans for our Post & Parcel Germany division.

With most vehicles already in operation, one-third of all German postcodes are now served by last-mile delivery routes operated with battery-electric vehicles powered by renewable electricity. A fleet of more than 35,000 electric vehicles – including e-vans and e-bikes – supports this milestone, showing how large-scale electrification can move from ambition to daily reality.

Decarbonization doesn’t stop at vehicles. In 2025, we continued rethinking how logistics facilities themselves are powered. In Thailand, we launched a solar-powered warehouse designed to generate its full annual operational energy on-site through solar power.

Equipped with a 4.2-megawatt-peak solar array and advanced battery storage, the facility operates independently of fossil-based grid electricity. For us, it serves as a reference example for the design of future logistics facilities within DHL – combining operational resilience, energy self-sufficiency, and long-term sustainability.