Spring GDS Impact Report 2025: From Measurement to Meaningful Decarbonization in Cross-Border Logistics

The newly released Spring GDS Impact Report 2025 marks a significant milestone for the company, offering a consolidated view of its environmental, social, and governance (ESG) progress. As cross-border e-commerce continues to scale globally, the report highlights how logistics players are transitioning from isolated sustainability initiatives to structured, data-driven decarbonization strategies.

A Growing Logistics Network with Rising Sustainability Expectations

Spring GDS continues to expand its global footprint, now operating across 14 countries with 20 hubs and serving more than 2,500 customers worldwide. In parallel, customer expectations around sustainability are clearly increasing. This is reflected in the company’s Net Promoter Score, which rose to +51 in 2025, and in the fact that 70% of customers now perceive Spring GDS as a sustainable logistics partner.

The company’s first Impact Report serves as a baseline for future ESG reporting, aligns partially with GRI standards, and contributes to PostNL’s broader Net Zero 2040 ambition.

Decarbonization Moves from Initiatives to Strategy

One of the most important shifts highlighted in the report is the transition from fragmented sustainability efforts to a structured decarbonization roadmap. This includes the introduction of new tools, scalable solutions, and measurable targets across the logistics value chain.

Measurable Environmental Impact in 2025

The report outlines several key achievements:

• 4.1 million liters of HVO100 biofuel applied, reducing emissions by 11.9 kilotonnes of CO2e
• Over 90,000 single-use carton boxes eliminated through reusable pallet systems
• 8,000 reusable pallet boxes deployed across the network
• 400 quarterly emissions reports generated for customers
• Launch of 349 customer-specific CO2 reporting solutions

These figures reflect a growing focus on both operational improvements and customer-facing sustainability transparency.

Scope 3 Emissions Dominate the Footprint

A key insight from the report is the overwhelming impact of Scope 3 emissions, which account for 99.7% of total emissions. Within this:

• Transport activities alone represent approximately 75% of emissions
• Purchased goods and services account for 16.7%
• Employee commuting and waste contribute smaller shares

This highlights a structural challenge for asset-light logistics providers: the majority of emissions sit outside direct operational control, requiring strong collaboration across partners and suppliers.

The Three Pillars of Logistics Decarbonization

Spring GDS aligns its strategy with broader industry trends, focusing on three main pathways:

Renewable Fuels as a Short-Term Lever

Biofuels such as HVO100 are currently the most scalable solution for reducing emissions in road transport. The company’s “Out the Tank” solution allows emissions reductions even when direct fuel substitution is not operationally feasible.

Electrification as the Long-Term Transition

Electrification of road transport is identified as the long-term solution, although current limitations around infrastructure and costs remain barriers. Adoption is expected to accelerate as technology matures and regulatory pressure increases.

Sustainable Aviation Fuel for Air Transport

Air freight remains one of the most carbon-intensive parts of logistics. Spring GDS is addressing this through its Book & Claim solution, enabling customers to invest in Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), which can reduce emissions by up to 80% compared to fossil fuels.

From Offsetting to Insetting

Another notable shift is the move away from carbon offsetting towards insetting. Instead of compensating emissions externally, Spring GDS is focusing on reducing emissions directly within its value chain.

While offsetting was still used in 2025 to address residual emissions, it will be phased out from 2026 in favor of operational reductions.

Data Transparency Becomes a Competitive Advantage

The launch of the Spring GDS Emission Tool represents a major step forward in data maturity. By linking shipment-level data with recognized methodologies, the company can now provide detailed emissions insights per shipment, destination, and transport mode.

This level of granularity enables:

• Better decision-making for customers
• Improved reporting accuracy
• Stronger alignment with international standards such as ISO 14083 and the GLEC Framework

As sustainability becomes a key differentiator in logistics partner selection, transparency is evolving into a core competitive advantage.

Circular Logistics Gains Momentum

Beyond transport, packaging innovation is another area of impact. The introduction of reusable orange pallet boxes demonstrates how circular principles can reduce both waste and emissions.

• Up to 2,000 tonnes of CO2e are avoided annually through reduced single-use packaging
• Full recyclability of materials at the end of life
• Improved load efficiency and reduced transport volume

However, full adoption across the network remains a challenge, requiring alignment with partners and operational processes.

A People-Centric Approach to Growth

The report also highlights strong performance on social metrics:

• 739 employees globally
• 86.16% retention rate
• 83% engagement score
• 46% female workforce
• 97.88% safety training coverage

In addition, more than 100 new employees joined in 2025, reflecting continued business growth. Training and development remain a priority, with employees averaging nearly 15 hours of training annually.

Workplace safety also remains a focus, with 26 recorded work-related injuries, all of which are analyzed for continuous improvement.

The Road Ahead: Scaling Impact Across the Value Chain

The Spring GDS Impact Report 2025 makes it clear that the logistics industry is entering a new phase of sustainability. The challenge is no longer defining ambitions, but operationalizing them across complex, global value chains.

Key priorities moving forward include:

• Increasing the share of renewable fuels and electrification
• Scaling SAF adoption in air transport
• Improving last-mile emissions data and performance
• Expanding the use of primary data for more accurate reporting

As cross-border e-commerce continues to grow, the ability to combine scalability with sustainability will define the next generation of logistics leaders.

If you want to find out more, read the full report here: https://www.spring-gds.com/sustainability/impact-report/

And also, you can watch our podcast episode with Thijs Boel, GLS Managing Director for Europe here: https://youtu.be/Y8vx-GPuw8s?si=ky3_Ua_eAhZTRaPT