FincoEnergies supports the development of sustainable supply chains
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‘Transport sector faces major hurdles in move towards CO₂ neutrality’
Freight transport accounts for over 10% of global CO₂ emissions – and that footprint continues to grow by 3% each year. ‘This highlights the pressing need for sustainability measures such as insetting’, says René Groot Bruinderink, Managing Director of Carbon Management at FincoEnergies, an independent provider of sustainable energy solutions.
Sea levels are rising. Even in the best case scenario, global sea levels are projected to rise by an average of 37 centimetres by 2100, according to a recent IPCC study. As a supplier of biofuels, FincoEnergies is committed to minimising the impact and helping to make the best case scenario a reality. ‘That is achievable, but only if CO2 emissions are brought down to zero by 2050’, says Groot Bruinderink. As a sustainability consultant working within the energy transition, he brings years of experience to the table. ‘Most of that experience comes from developing sustainability strategies for multinationals and working in the field of offsetting, particularly within the voluntary carbon market’, he says. ‘I was looking for a stronger connection to physical operations, and the GoodShipping proposition offered by FincoEnergies fits that ambition perfectly’. The GoodShipping brand makes sustainable shipping accessible to everyone through insetting.
Reducing emissions by up to 85%
‘Insetting means reducing CO₂ emissions within the very sector in which they are generated. We do this by facilitating the shift from fossil fuels to sustainable biofuels’, explains Groot. (Refer to the ‘Insetting’ section for further information). By facilitating this switch, Scope 1 emissions are reduced by 85%, while cargo owners can lower their Scope 3 emissions without requiring any adjustments to the supply chain from shippers.
Milestone
While GoodShipping was already pioneering insetting back in 2017, it took years before an international standard was established. Together with partners including the Smart Freight Centre (SFC), the World Economic Forum and DHL, GoodShipping developed the Voluntary Market-Based Measures Framework for Logistics Emissions Accounting and Reporting. ‘This is essentially a set of rules designed to safeguard the traceability and accounting of insetting – a system also known as Book & Claim’, explains Groot. He describes the framework as a milestone: ‘By following the guidelines, companies gain transparency and are able to effectively quantify, track and account for their CO₂ emission reductions’. The framework also promotes the acceptance and credibility of insetting, contributing to the professionalisation and broader recognition of the concept.
This is reinforced by the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), an international framework that supports companies in setting science-based climate targets. SBTi recently launched a public consultation in which GoodShipping’s Book & Claim methodology is independently and scientifically validated.
More than just biofuels for shipping
‘It’s a promising first step, but it’s not yet sufficient’, Groot adds. ‘Scaling up is essential, and we must keep investigating other viable solutions’. FincoEnergies’ Biofuel Swap is a prime example of this in action. The concept was launched at the end of 2024 and is similar to that of GoodShipping, but is tailored towards the road transport sector. ‘With the Biofuel Swap, we enable logistics service providers to scale up their use of biofuels, regardless of physical infrastructure constraints’. ‘This also makes it possible for them to achieve a greater reduction in Scope 1 emissions’, he explains.
FincoEnergies also developed the DecarbDesk – a digital platform for managing, auditing and trading insetting certificates. With its new market platform, the company is responding to growing market demand for solutions that enable efficient collaboration and offer broad choice. ‘The DecarbDesk provides access to available volumes from GoodShipping, the Biofuel Swap and other suppliers. Our clients can then select the certificates they need and allocate them to their own end customers’, explains Groot.
Voluntary or mandatory?
Where emissions offsetting has traditionally been a voluntary measure, Groot observes a clear shift towards increasing regulation and mandatory requirements. The European Union has recently tightened its targets through directives such as RED III for renewable energy and the FuelEU Maritime regulation. Under these regulations and directives, the EU requires an increasingly larger share of the fuel used by vessels to consist of biofuels. ‘These stricter rules significantly increase complexity. For shippers, it’s becoming harder to distinguish between voluntary actions and legal obligations. We have a clear overview of the requirements and are of course on hand to advise our clients accordingly’.
What is insetting?
Insetting is the principle by which companies reduce their environmental footprint within their own value chain. Rather than relying on offsetting, CO₂ reductions are achieved through the actual use of sustainable alternatives within that chain. Certificates for the use of biofuels make it possible to purchase an equivalent amount of sustainable transport, which corresponds to a reduction in CO₂ emissions. Insetting enables companies to actively drive the decarbonisation of their own value chain in a meaningful way. It also helps to drive long-term change across the supply chain.
Collaboration is key
According to Groot Bruinderink, the greatest challenge for now is convincing all companies to start using sustainable biofuels today: ‘We recognise that achieving carbon neutrality in the transport sector is a tremendous undertaking. Especially with the growing demands from regulators and society, effective solutions are essential’.
Collaboration, therefore, is key. According to Groot, the GoodShipping proposition offers an excellent way to foster collaboration between asset owners seeking to reduce their Scope 1 emissions and cargo owners aiming to lower their Scope 3 emissions through insetting: ‘Insetting links cargo to biofuel, distributing the cost of supply chain decarbonisation across multiple stakeholders within that chain. It illustrates the overarching form of collaboration within the chain’.
FincoEnergies also works closely with a range of partners including the Port of Rotterdam Authority, Smart Freight Centre, Dutch Logistics Alliance (Nederland Distributieland) and an extensive network of consultants and certificate providers – including those focused on air freight. ‘At FincoEnergies, we position ourselves as a one-stop shop, not least through the supply of sustainable biofuels via GoodFuels’, explains Groot.
‘Switch to Zero’
To accelerate sustainable shipping without requiring complex adjustments to the supply chain, GoodShipping launched the ‘Switch to Zero’ campaign in partnership with the Port of Rotterdam Authority. The campaign gave companies a straightforward way to familiarise themselves with the concept of insetting, allowing them to reduce the CO₂ emissions of (part of) their cargo at an attractive rate and without any further obligations. It demonstrated that change is already possible today, with no need to modify the existing supply chain.
‘I’m proud of the collaboration with all the various stakeholders committed to reducing CO₂ emissions across the supply chain’, says Groot Bruinderink. The ultimate goal is that insetting solutions will no longer be needed, because global transport will be fully sustainable in its own right.