DHL and World Energy agree on deal for sustainable aviation fuel

DHL Express has signed an agreement with World Energy, a producer of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), for the purchase of approximately 668 million litres of SAF over the next seven years.

The purchases will be made via sustainable aviation fuel certificates (SAFc), with the agreement continuing into 2030.

The alternative fuel will replace jet fuel in DHL Express’ air cargo operations. The logistics company expects that this will reduce around 1.7 million tonnes of CO₂e on a lifecycle basis, which it says is “equivalent to handling the approximately 77,000 annual aircraft movements of DHL Express in the Americas carbon neutrally for a full year.”

DHL Group’s Sustainability Roadmap outlines its sustainability goals, including reducing annual greenhouse gas emissions to below 29 million tonnes of CO₂e in 2030 across scopes 1, 2, and 3. Furthermore, Deutsche Post DHL Group has committed to reducing all logistics-related emissions to zero by the year 2050.

This follows DHL Express’ launch of GoGreen Plus in February – a service offering customers the use of SAF when transporting their shipments by air. DHL Express has also recently invested in alternative fuels to decarbonise its road transport logistics operations, deploying a fleet of 18 biofuel-powered trucks to assist with the logistics operations of all remaining European races in the current Formula 1 season.

John Pearson, Chief Executive of DHL Express, commented: “DHL Express is firmly dedicated to pioneering a sustainable future in aviation logistics.

“By partnering with World Energy and confirming this milestone agreement, we are taking another concrete leap towards minimising 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.”

Gene Gebolys, Chief Executive of World Energy, added: “Decarbonising the hard-to-abate sectors requires commitment across the value chain, and partnerships like the one we are launching today are key to enabling companies like DHL to meet their ambitions climate goals.”

Source: logisticsmanager.com