SPAIN/USA. Travel experience player Avolta and logistics provider DB Schenker have struck a pioneering agreement for the transport of goods using marine biofuel between Europe and the USA. Avolta said the contract was a first of its kind in Spain and places it “among the pioneering companies in low-emissions maritime transport”.
From now on, all containers that Avolta will move on the Barcelona to Miami route, using biofuel, will be shipped via a low-emissions platform.
This is achieved through the application of waste-based marine biofuels and additional units of sustainable marine biofuel. This biofuel switch could prevent over 150 tons of CO2e Well-to-Wake emissions per year, based on Avolta’s 2023 container volume on this route, reducing up to -84% of the CO2 emissions in all.
The fuel used is called Used Cooking oil methyl ester (UCOME) and is based on renewable and sustainable sources, mainly waste cooking oil. The application will be guided by the Book & Claim System, a set of principles that have been developed through a global, multi-stakeholder process with third-party validation. It ensures that the use of this chain of custody model has full traceability and credibility, as well as a demonstrable climate impact.
Avolta Chief Public Affairs & ESG Officer Camillo Rossotto said: “We are taking a significant step forward towards decarbonising our shipments and route transportations. This agreement represents the starting point of the transitioning to biofuel for ocean freight which will contribute to decarbonise our logistic emission.
“Our company’s commitment to sustainability is firm and long-term and, as proof of this, we are planning to increase the volume of containers transported using biofuel, advancing in the sustainable and low-emission transportation industry.”
Miguel Ángel de la Torre, Director of Maritime Transport at DB Schenker in Iberia, said: “Our mission is to help, facilitate, and guide our customers in the sustainable transformation, and on this occasion, we are doing so by offering this biofuel so that they can convert their freight transport into low-emission transport. In this way, our customer Avolta is not only pioneering and helping to reduce emissions but is also ahead of the new regulations and associated benefits that will be tightened in the coming years.”
Within shipping, the International Maritime Organization (IMO) strategy calls for a -40% reduction in greenhouse gases by 2023 and for at least 10% of the energy used in shipping to come from zero-energy sources, to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. ✈
