Spain's Inditex & Maersk team up to slash GHG emissions in shipping

17 Oct '23

3 min read

Pic: Adobe Stock/tonyv3112

Insights

Spain's Inditex has teamed up with freight group Maersk to reduce GHG emissions in its seaborne logistics.
Using Maersk's Eco Delivery Ocean programme, conventional fossil fuels are replaced with green alternatives such as green methanol or waste feedstock-based biodiesel.
This move is expected to cut GHG emissions by over 80 per cent per litre.

Spain's Inditex, parent company of fashion brands such as Zara and Massimo Dutti, has partnered with the freight group Maersk to reduce its global greenhouse gas (GHG) footprint from seaborne logistics by incorporating alternative fuels in all its inbound routes with the carrier. Through the ECO Delivery Ocean programme, Maersk replaces fossil fuels on its ships with green fuels like green methanol or second-generation biodiesel based on waste feedstocks. This is expected to deliver an estimated reduction of more than 80 per cent in GHG emissions per litre compared to conventional sources.

With Eco Delivery Ocean, Maersk offers its customers the opportunity to handle transports completely with certified green fuels for a fixed cost. The corresponding GHG savings are confirmed to the customers with an externally verified certificate and these transports will be exempted from EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) charges by Maersk in the future, Inditex and Maersk said in a joint press release.

“This collaboration is a great example of how boosting innovative solutions with dedicated partners is key to fight climate change. Through this joint initiative with Maersk, we are making significant strides in reducing emissions associated with our sea freight. This project aligns with our goal to reach net zero emissions in 2040 and contributes to scale alternative fuels with a significant reduced carbon footprint,” said Abel Lopez, head of import, export, and transport at Inditex.

“We are proud to have Inditex among our first customers who assign 100 per cent of their Maersk ocean inbound cargo to our Eco Delivery product, which ensures a significant reduction of GHG emissions thanks to green fuels. We know Inditex since long as a very responsibly and sustainably thinking partner and customer and going all the way on their ocean cargo is good news for the environment and climate,” said Emilio de la Cruz, managing director of Maersk’s Area South West Europe.

Right now, Maersk experiences that the demand for the very low GHG emission product Eco Delivery is high and very dynamic. “A lot of customers are asking us for a solution to reduce their scope 3 emissions, and the first customers are buying this premium solution for their whole cargo under Maersk Bill of Lading now. We are happy to serve this demand with Eco Delivery on an instant basis,” added de la Cruz.

Like Inditex, Maersk has the ambitious climate target to become a net zero company across all business areas until 2040. Besides using Eco Delivery for all its ocean cargo under Maersk care, Inditex is also boosting multimodal transport and is collaborating in a new rail solution pilot of Maersk, RENFE, and Cepsa in the South of Spain which was launched this summer. These close collaborations are essential in order to deliver on mutual decarbonisation goals.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (NB)

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