CLIMATE OFFSET OR CLIMATE INVESTMENT?
Climate offset is an important step on the road to a long-term sustainable transport system, but to achieve this, we need to make the transition to fossil-free transport. This is why DHL Freight, together with our customers, is compensating Swedish carriers for the extra cost of investing in more expensive, climate-efficient vehicles and fossil-free fuels.
DHL’s global climate goal is to achieve zero net emissions by 2050, with a number of high sub-goals set as early as 2030. To achieve these goals, we need to invest in fossil-free technology, not just climate offset. Climate offset means that companies invest in projects that reduce fossil carbon dioxide emissions in developing countries, rather than more costly emission reductions in their own countries and businesses. But emissions in their own country are not disappearing, and the underlying behaviours are not changing. This means that we also have to reduce emissions where they occur, while actively investing in new technologies for a faster transition to a more sustainable transport system – right here and now.
In order to be able to switch to a sustainable transport system, Swedish carriers need to be able to make investments in climate-efficient vehicles and fossil-free fuels. But this can be expensive and risky - a climate-smart vehicle today can cost up to four times more than a "regular" and fossil-free fuels are often more expensive than fossil diesel. That is why DHL Freight in Sweden has developed the option SEND IT GREEN - a way to, together with our customers, finance the riders' additional cost for these investments. The concept is as simple as it is unique. DHL signs agreements with carriers who want to invest in more expensive, climate-smart vehicles and fossil-free fuels and reimburses them for the additional cost per kilometer over the life of the vehicle.
Like green electricity, but for transport
When our customers choose SEND IT GREEN, the equivalent freight is reserved in the green part of our transport network – using the same principle as green electricity, but for transport. For the greatest possible benefit from this, we often employ our green solutions where we have large volumes and long distances. This means that we can never guarantee that your particular shipment will be transported “green”, but we can guarantee that the money goes towards compensating a carrier for the extra cost of operating the equivalent transport using fossil-free technology somewhere in our Swedish network. The whole process is checked and verified annually by an independent external auditor, which means that we know exactly how many tkm of green transport we achieve, with what technology and what impact it has.
Started back in 2002
Since the initiative began in 2002, SEND IT GREEN and its predecessors Miljöfrakt and Gröna Ton have contributed to bringing over 200 vehicles using alternative climate-smart technology onto the market. Together, these vehicles have driven just over 800 times around the world, or 40 trips to the moon and back.
SEND IT GREEN is a unique concept that is contributing to a faster transition of the Swedish transport system and allowing our carriers to dare to take the risk of investing in more expensive climate-smart technology and fossil-free fuels. The more shipments that are sent with SEND IT GREEN, the faster our joint journey towards a sustainable transport system will be.
Electric van operating in Uppsala financed with money from SEND IT GREEN.
