Rhenus Group Sustainability Report 2025 highlights shift from groundwork to global performance

The report positions 2025 as a significant year in the transition toward a more centralised, scalable and transparent Group-wide approach.

A key development in 2025 was the Group's commitment to the Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi), supported by work on emissions baselines, target-setting methodologies and a more granular decarbonisation roadmap. With the report now externally verified, this also builds up the credibility of reported progress. External recognition of this progress was acknowledged with the EcoVadis Platinum status, an important milestone in the Group's sustainability journey. Over the past year, sustainability at Rhenus has moved from a set of individual initiatives to a more integrated way of operating across the Group. The report details this integration by highlighting the continued development of a unified emissions database, expanded reporting structures and dashboard testing to improve transparency and decision-making.

"2025 marked a decisive step forward in how we manage sustainability at Rhenus," said Dr. Joana Baetz, Member of the Board responsible for HR, Sustainability and Compliance. "Today, we operate with an integrated and harmonised Group-wide system that enables us to manage performance consistently, transparently, and at scale. Our EcoVadis Platinum rating reflects this level of maturity. Building on this strong foundation, our focus is now on actively using this system to steer decisions, track progress through clear KPIs, and strengthen accountability across the organisation."

The report also sets out how sustainability is becoming more visible in day-to-day operations. One example is the hybrid push barge Mannheim I+II, which can reduce CO₂ and NOx emissions by up to 72 percent in daily operation compared with conventional propulsion systems. When operated with HVO100, emissions reductions can reach up to 90 percent. The vessel is designed for operational flexibility and resilience on key Rhine routes, including at low water levels.

Beyond climate-related measures, the report shows progress in workplace safety and resource management. In 2025, Rhenus recorded zero fatalities. The lost time injury frequency rate improved to 9.70 from 13.8 in 2024, while the lost time injury severity rate improved to 18.10 from 20.10. In waste management, the Group generated 106,449 tons of waste, of which 98,237 tons were diverted from disposal and 98,029 tons were recycled. These figures reflect the role of sustainability not only in long-term climate ambition, but also in operational discipline and risk management.

The Sustainability Report 2025 also highlights progress in social and governance structures. Rhenus introduced updated global Social Policies, continued the rollout of Workday as the Group's platform for Social KPIs, and advanced modernisation of its Compliance Management System with revised or formalised Group-wide policies covering anti-corruption, antitrust and whistleblowing. Together, these developments support a more unified ESG management model throughout the Group.

Juthaporn Srinang, Group Director of Sustainability at Rhenus, emphasises: "We now have a much clearer basis to work from, particularly in data quality, governance and in how we connect sustainability to our operations. With our report now also independently assured and aligned with the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) Standards, we have further strengthened transparency and reliability. The next step is to translate this into action that can be scaled across the business and applied consistently to how we serve our customers."

Looking ahead, Rhenus states that from 2026 onwards its focus will increasingly shift from building systems to using them more actively to steer performance, track progress through clearer KPIs and expand sustainable services in a more market-ready way. This gives the report a forward-looking narrative: 2025 was the year of building the foundation, while the next phase is about transforming that foundation into measurable business and customer value.

The report is available at: https://www.rhenus.group/green-logistics/