MSC Partners with South Pole to Expand MSC Carbon Neutral Programme

• MSC was the first shipping line to offer its customers a complete Carbon Neutral Programme, by minimising, calculating and offsetting CO2 emissions to meet customer demand
• MSC continues to invest in its modern green fleet to help customers to lower the carbon footprint of their supply chains
• Through the Carbon Neutral Programme, MSC customers can compensate for emissions from their shipments by supporting South Pole’s climate action projects

Since early 2019, MSC Mediterranean Shipping Company has partnered with leading global climate solutions provider South Pole, to develop the MSC Carbon Neutral Programme. After successful implementation in selected countries, MSC is now extending the programme to clients worldwide throughout 2020.

The programme complements MSC’s strategic approach to sustainability and massive investment in reducing emissions across its fleet. MSC recently completed the launch of the largest class of container ships which produce the lowest CO2 emissions per container carried by design – MSC’s Gülsün Class. Furthermore, MSC is actively exploring and trialling a range of alternative fuel and propulsion technologies to support the container shipping industry’s long-term goals to decarbonise.

On top of this, MSC was the first major shipping line in 2019 to offer an option to fully compensate the unavoidable carbon emissions caused by the transport of their cargo through supporting climate protection projects managed by South Pole.

The climate action projects developed by South Pole deliver measurable benefits aligned with the goals of the Paris Agreement and the UN Sustainable Development Goals. They improve lives, provide jobs, and preserve landscapes for communities around the world. As part of the Carbon Neutral Programme, MSC customers can compensate the emissions from the transportation of their cargo by financially contributing to two selected projects that reduce emissions. South Pole cancels the same amount of carbon credits generated by these projects, which are audited and third-party certified according to the most stringent international standards, the Verified Carbon Standard (Verra), the Climate, Community and Biodiversity Standards and the Social Carbon*.

“In addition to running the biggest fleet investment programme in the industry, MSC has ensured that customers have an option to compensate CO2 emissions through the global MSC Carbon Neutral Programme. We have partnered with South Pole, a leading, certified third party to extend the MSC Carbon Neutral Programme and help bridge the gap between shipping today and the zero-carbon future we all aspire to,” says Claudio Bozzo, Chief Operating Officer, MSC.

“We congratulate MSC on this important effort to further green their fleet and for facilitating their customers to be more climate-friendly. Transformational change won’t happen overnight, but each step we take along a shared, ambitious climate journey is bringing us closer to where we need to be,” said Renat Heuberger, CEO of South Pole.

“MSC clients are given the opportunity to  contribute to projects that not only mitigate  global CO₂ emissions, but also improve lives on the ground in communities in China and Zimbabwe – from the development of cleaner energy and to combating poverty, improving skills and ensuring food security,” said Natalia Gorina, Commercial Director at South Pole.

For more information about the MSC Carbon Neutral Programme, please visit msc.com/carbon-neutral.

For more about South Pole, visit www.southpole.com or follow them on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.

_{* The compensation of emissions offered as part of the MSC Carbon Neutral Programme follows a rigorous process. The carbon footprint of shipments is measured, after which South Pole certifies that the corresponding amount of carbon credits from the selected two projects is permanently cancelled on behalf of MSC customers in the Verra Registry,  a trusted emissions registry run by Verra (former VCS) – an internationally recognised, third-party verification standard. These carbon credits are assigned serial numbers in the publicly accessible registry ensuring no double counting of claims.}