In February 2018, the European forest fibre and paper industry presented its 2050 vision to decarbonise its transport and logistics and contribute to the EU’s debate on low-carbon mobility.
We have a supply chain that is quite different from that of other industries and this presents both opportunities and challenges for decarbonisation. Access to raw materials, such as wood from forests and recycled paper from collection points is much more dispersed than in other industries.
We also rely mostly on road, rather than other means of transport. At the same time finished products need to be delivered with short lead times to diverse customers across Europe. It is estimated that in the framework of current policies, technologies and infrastructure a 60% decarbonisation by 2050 is feasible. An additional 20 % reduction, needed to achieve the 80 % reduction objective, is very challenging and would notably require a significant step change in innovation and technologies, as well as in policies for their deployment.
Here are the four pathways we have identified to reach our decarbonisation vision:
• Truck fuel efficiency: at least 30% improvement by 2050
• Fuel shift • Increase in permitted unit loads and digitalisation pathways: an additional 30% reduction
• Supporting policy conditions and infrastructure, most notably environmentally friendly trucking and harmonised EU rules and regulations.
To learn more about how we are pioneering decarbonisation in transport and logistics we encourage you to consult our paper here