Geodis renews certification of mass-balance mechanism

Photo: Geodis

Geodis announced in mid-July that its mass-balance mechanism has been recertified by Dekra Certification following a comprehensive audit.

This certification confirms the reliability and traceability of the mechanism, which enables customers to receive an allocation of CO2-emission reductions based on a certified carbon-accounting methodology.

Since 2024, Geodis has implemented the mass-balance mechanism across its European road network line of business.

The mechanism enables customers to support the deployment of alternative energies within Geodis’ network and receive an allocation of the corresponding CO2-emission reductions.

It can also be applied when the direct use of alternative energies for a customer’s shipments is not operationally feasible due to constraints such as long transport distances without refueling infrastructure, regulatory limitations or limited charging availability.

Through this mechanism, Geodis leverages the use of alternative energy sources across its network—including renewable diesel, 100 percent biodiesel (B100) and electricity—and allocates the corresponding CO2-emission reductions to customers subscribing to the mass-balance offering.

Following its audit, Dekra Certification renewed the certification of the mechanism, confirming the robustness of Geodis’ mass-balance mechanism.

The mechanism is an essential lever for supporting customers with an additional option to support their greenhouse-gas emissions-reduction objectives while supporting the deployment of alternative energy solutions across Geodis’ road-transport network.

The mass-balance mechanism enables customers who are unable to decarbonize specific transport flows directly to support the use of alternative energy vehicles elsewhere within Geodis’ network.

In return, customers receive an allocation of the corresponding CO2-emission reductions based on the reduction level selected (60 percent, 82 percent or 90 percent compared with a diesel-reference scenario).

This flexibility is made possible by Geodis’ diversified fleet, which relies on three alternatives to conventional diesel:

• Hydrotreated vegetable oil, also known as renewable diesel.

• B100, a fuel made entirely from vegetable-based feedstock.

• Electricity, a key driver of Geodis’ road-transport decarbonization strategy.

The mechanism provides full traceability of the alternative energy used and ensures that CO2-emission reductions are allocated in accordance with the certified mass-balance mechanism.

The methodology and carbon-accounting process are independently verified each year by Dekra Certification to ensure transparency and credibility.

The mass-balance mechanism offers customers:

• The ability to choose the level of allocated CO2-emission reductions that best aligns with their decarbonization objectives.

• Operational continuity without constraints related to transport distance, charging infrastructure or alternative fuel availability.

• Reporting detailing the CO2-emission reductions allocated under the certified mass-balance mechanism.

• The possibility of activating the mechanism at any time, without operational impact.

“The renewal of this certification confirms the robustness of our mass-balance mechanism and reflects Geodis’ commitment to providing practical and innovative solutions that support the decarbonization of road transport,” said Marc Vollet, an executive with Geodis. “The mechanism is an important component of Geodis’ decarbonization strategy and will contribute to achieve the group’s Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi)-validated objectives—reducing greenhouse-gas emissions from its owned fleet by 42 percent by 2030 and reducing the carbon intensity of subcontracted transport operations by 25 percent.”

Geodis’ mass-balance mechanism recently received the “Jury’s Favourite” award at L’Oréal’s Spread the Green Vibes 2026 event.

The award recognizes initiatives related to transport decarbonization and highlights the certified, documented and traceable nature of Geodis’ mechanism.