ECTA Releases Their Annual Report 2023 & ECTA RC Report 2022

The European Chemical Transport Association has recently released its annual report for 2023, which details their efforts over the last year across the industry.

According to the report, “the chemical transport and logistics sector faces several geopolitical conflicts around the world which had an immediate and significant impact on the social and economic life in all EU countries” throughout 2023. 

This impact was felt in several ways, with members reporting “declining and unpredictable transportation volumes, fluctuating fuel prices and high inflation rates.”

However, 2023 did have some more positive events. The report highlights the continued sustainability efforts that are progressing across Europe, including “trend[s] towards decarbonisation of transport and logistics”. 

Further proof that sustainability is at the forefront of chemical transport, the ECTA report mentions the following:

• The publication of ISO 14083, which is the first universal method for emissions accounting in the logistics industry.
• The GLEC Framework 3.0, which is an updated way to calculate the carbon footprint within the global logistics industry.

Alongside the 2023 annual report, ECTA also released their Responsible Care (RC) report for 2022. The ECTA RC program is a “voluntary initiative adopted by major European Logistics service companies” and is “aimed at introducing and supporting sustainability measures” across the industry.

As part of their work, ECTA launched their Zero Emissions Knowledge Platform to share important information and expertise about sustainability solutions. An important part of the ECTA RC initiative was released in 2023, with several webinars being published “on subjects related to carbon emissions” for RC members and other interested parties. The report remarks that these have been “well-attended, with an average of 80 participants.”

Another key takeaway from the report was the recognition of the driver shortage, which continues to cause structural difficulties. ECTA have continued to work on this issue, including the release of an ECTA Drivers App that encourages drivers to rate locations (results expected in the latter half of 2024).

Lastly, the report discusses the continued trend towards digitalisation within the logistics industry. This covers several areas, from paperless systems and cloud computing, to using IT platforms and digital identities. Not only is this aimed at improving logistical sustainability, but digitalisation also increases system efficiency and the safety of the people and data within the industry. 

Supporting the ECTA digital strategy is the ECTA digitalisation workgroup, who manage projects across the board. Overall, important highlights from the ECTA WG for 2023 include the continued support of the ECLIC digital community initiative. This is a “not-for-profit founded in 2018 by ECTA, essenscia, and EFTCO to facilitate data exchanges through a data sharing platform”.

As the logistics and material transport industry continues its drive towards more sustainable business practices, reports like these are essential for monitoring progress. We look forward to seeing what the next year brings, as everyone makes strides towards environmental improvement.

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