Moving Decarbonisation from Strategy into Supply Chains

Decarbonisation, at its simplest, is the process of moving away from dependence on fossil fuels and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. For us, that means changing how goods are moved, powered and managed, from energy sources and transport modes to fuels, data and commercial design. Ultimately, decarbonisation only matters if it changes what organisations can actually do.

Much of the current debate in logistics still sits at strategy level, targets, pledges and timelines, but customers increasingly need mechanisms they can use now, within their own value chains, to reduce emissions and report progress with confidence.

Turning Intent into Action

That was the starting point for our Carbon Inset Programme (CIP) trial, one of the first of its kind in the UK. Rather than asking customers to look outside their value chains for carbon offsets, the programme rewards import cargo moving through our UK terminals with verified carbon inset credits linked directly to lower carbon activity within the supply chain itself. This distinction matters. Insetting makes Scope 3 action more tangible, easier to audit and much closer to the physical flow of goods.

The trial launched in January 2025 at our Southampton and London Gateway terminals, initially offering 50kg CO₂e per loaded import container, with the first certificates issued in April 2025. Following strong customer demand, the programme was extended and, from October 2025, the per‑container credit increased to 250kg CO₂e. New initiatives such as this have been funded through market‑level UK tariffs, including the Energy Transition Contribution (ETC) and the Modal Shift Programme (MSP) disbursement.

The intention was clear: there was no reason to wait for regulation or market convention before creating a practical mechanism. The strongest sustainability business cases rarely sit on environmental benefits alone; they emerge at the intersection of customer demand, commercial differentiation and credible data. Because inset credits are linked to activity within our own supply chain ecosystem, they are also far easier to explain internally than abstract offset purchases, an important factor when asking a business to back something new.

Why Modal Shift Needed Commercial Redesign

Modal shift is widely discussed, but the operational and commercial hurdles are significant. The biggest misconception is that shifting freight from road to rail is primarily a communications challenge. In reality, most customers already understand that rail is lower carbon. The real barriers are commercial confidence, network practicality and operational consistency.

Rail competes against road in a market that values immediacy, flexibility and familiarity. If rail is perceived as less responsive, less visible or more expensive at the point of decision, good intentions disappear quickly. That is why modal shift has to be designed as a system change, not a marketing campaign.

Our Modal Shift Programme (MSP) trial was introduced in September 2023 to make rail more financially attractive for laden import containers moving inland within 140 miles of Southampton. Cost remains one of the most stubborn barriers to adoption, so the programme uses a financial incentive that has evolved over time as market conditions and rail performance have changed. That flexibility matters. Sustainability schemes that are too rigid tend to fail the moment the market moves.

Since launch, more than 100,000 containers have been moved by rail instead of road, removing over 165,000 truck journeys and delivering an estimated 40,000 tonnes of CO₂e reduction. The broader lesson is clear: when commercial design and operational reality are aligned, low carbon choices stop looking like compromise and start looking like better supply chain design.

The Cost of Delay in Lower Carbon Transition

Leading decarbonisation programmes from a finance background brings a certain comfort with tension. In capital constrained environments, there will always be pressure to justify why sustainability investments should compete with other priorities. But the framing is changing. The question is no longer “can we afford to invest in decarbonisation?” - it is increasingly “what is the cost of failing to build lower carbon supply chains quickly enough?”.

Those costs show up in customer expectations, asset risk, regulatory exposure, energy volatility and commercial relevance. Progress comes from focusing on transition pathways rather than perfection. Our Modal Shift, Carbon Inset and Low Carbon Truck programmes are not disconnected projects; they are staged interventions with different payback profiles and roles in the journey.

HVO, for example, is not the endpoint, but an effective near-term lever because it works with existing vehicles while delivering significant emissions reductions. Our Low Carbon Truck Programme trial positions HVO as a transitional step, while the Electric Vehicle Transition & Introduction Accelerator (EVITA) trial extends that logic by helping operators test zero tailpipe emission vehicles in live container operations. This approach allows the industry to decarbonise at pace while building towards longer term electrification.

Bringing the Supply Chain Forward Together

One of the biggest challenges of decarbonisation is that supply chain partners and customers are at very different levels of maturity. Some are ready for verified Scope 3 reductions and granular reporting, whilst others are still working out which levers are practical, affordable and available now.

Progress depends on meeting people where they are, but not leaving them there. That is why our programmes are structured as pathways: carbon insetting provides cargo owners with a credible, reportable mechanism tied directly to their own supply chains, modal shift offers commercially supported access to lower carbon inland transport, and our Low Carbon Truck Programme is particularly important for road freight, where smaller operators often face the highest barriers to change.

Meaningful progress comes from making the low carbon option easier to access, making the carbon outcome easier to evidence, and making the commercial case easier to understand. When those elements come together, differences in maturity start to matter far less.

Designing the Next Generation of Logistics Operations

Looking ahead, a genuinely net zero logistics operation for Scope 1 and 2 emissions will be defined by orchestration rather than a single breakthrough. It will combine renewable and zero carbon energy generation, far greater electrification, increased rail where modal economics allow, better asset utilisation, stronger data and much closer alignment between commercial design and carbon performance. Battery energy storage will be commonplace, balancing load and improving resilience. Scope 3 net zero is far more complex and requires deep coordination across customers, suppliers and operators, but our target is to be net zero by 2050.

There are real reasons for optimism. The industry is moving from passive intent to active experimentation, and carbon insetting, modal shift incentives, low carbon fuels and electric truck trials are now happening in live operations, not just in strategy decks.

The next decade will be defined by how quickly we scale what works, share the risk of early adoption and stop waiting for perfect conditions. Because decarbonisation only matters if it changes what organisations can do now, not when the market makes it unavoidable.

Find out more about our commitment to being a world leader in sustainability.