ESSEN: November 12, 2018. In anticipation of a vote by the European Parliament this week on reducing CO2 emissions in the freight industry, DB Schenker says it wants to reduce emissions of trucks over 7.5 tons by 20 percent in 2025 and 35 percent by 2035.

Based on proposals by the European Commission, the EU Parliament votes to reduce CO2 emissions by 15 percent by 2025 and 30 percent by 2030.

"I believe that more can be done and more must be done to encourage the forthcoming structural transformation in the automotive industry and the availability of alternative drive technologies in freight transport as well,” said DB Schenker CEO Jochen Thewes.

The company recently decided to convert its own fleet of distribution vehicles to ‘electromobility’ by retrofitting all vehicles up to 3.5 tons with electric drives or fuel cells by 2030.

Thewes added that with half of all vehicles weighing between 3.5 and 7.5 tons electrically-powered by that date, the industry must focus on trucks weighing over 7.5 tons.

Schenker parent company Deutsche Bahn is focusing on the environment to highlight the fact that rail freight transport reduces CO2 emissions by around 80 percent compared to road. The company says it is aiming to reduce the specific CO2 emissions of all transport modes over 50 percent by 2030 compared to 2006.