The CSRD: New Regulatory Burden or a Lever for Decarbonizing Logistics?
Category: News Author: OneChain Date: — Reading time: —
Starting in January, shippers with more than 500 employees will be subject to the CSRD. Companies with more than 250 employees will have a brief reprieve before they too must comply with the new requirements starting in January 2026.
CSRD — What Is It?
The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive is a European directive that requires companies to report on their environmental, social, and governance (ESG) impact in order to strengthen transparency and encourage investment in sustainable activities.
Who Is Affected?
The CSRD rollout spans from 2024 to 2026 depending on company size.
Impact on Freight Decarbonization
The CSRD impacts supply chain teams at three levels:
1. Calculating and Reporting Transport-Related Carbon Emissions
Shippers must now measure and report their CO2 emissions, including those from Scope 3, which encompasses indirect emissions from freight transport.
Without accurate measurement, developing an action plan becomes impossible.
2. Publishing an Action Plan
Shippers must develop and publicly disclose a detailed action plan describing the measures they intend to implement to reduce their environmental impact.
3. Internal Initiatives
The CSRD also encourages shippers to implement internal initiatives aimed at improving their sustainability, such as employee training.
How OneChain Can Help
OneChain provides a TMS that allows you to automate data collection on the transport side. OneChain also enables you to report your avoided emissions as part of a transport carbon emissions reduction plan.
Conclusion
If your company is poorly equipped and lacks a proper methodology, the CSRD may turn your transport management into a laborious exercise, and publishing your carbon footprint along with your strategy could pose a reputational risk.
On the other hand, with the right tools, this directive represents an opportunity to communicate in a quantitative and concrete way about your trajectory and ambitions in terms of decarbonization.