# Road Freight: GLEC

💡 **High-Level Description**

The Global Logistics Emissions Council (GLEC) framework emerges as a landmark in carbon accounting, especially pertinent to the sea freight sector. GLEC's approach provides companies with a harmonized and comprehensive method to calculate and report the carbon footprints of their logistics supply chains, including sea freight. A key strength of the GLEC framework is its universality; it is compatible with other standards and methods, which facilitates streamlined reporting and comparison across various sectors and regions.

As maritime transportation is one of the major contributors to global carbon emissions, the GLEC framework places a notable emphasis on this sector. It incorporates factors like fuel consumption, ship operational practices, and even the impact of auxiliary activities at ports. By providing guidelines that are both rigorous and actionable, the GLEC framework is a vital tool for companies aiming to reduce their carbon footprint and align with global sustainability goals.

## **Sample API Requests**

### A. Without audit mode (for pre-booking/quotes)

```json
{
  "expand": ["items"],
  "items": [
    {
      "audit": false,
      "type": "sea_freight",
      "external_reference": "test_2",
      "origin": "OSL",
      "destination": "HEL",
      "weight_in_tonnes": 86,
      "fuel_type": "vlsfo",
      "vessel_type": "liquefied_gas_tanker_under_199999_dwt",
      "load_characteristic": "heavy",
      "energy_scope": "ttw",
      "methodology": "GLEC"
    }
  ]
}
```

### B. With audit mode (for finalized/post-booking calculations)

```json
{
  "expand": ["items"],
  "audit_for": "<Auditable Entity ID>",
  "items": [
    {
      "audit": true,
      "type": "sea_freight",
      "external_reference": "test_2",
      "origin": "OSL",
      "destination": "HEL",
      "weight_in_tonnes": 86,
      "fuel_type": "vlsfo",
      "vessel_type": "liquefied_gas_tanker_under_199999_dwt",
      "load_characteristic": "heavy",
      "energy_scope": "ttw",
      "methodology": "GLEC"
    }
  ]
}
```

> **Note:** `audit_for` is optional. Provide when calculating on behalf of a specific Auditable entity; otherwise omit.

## **API Request Items**

* `"type"`: `"sea_freight"` (required)
* `"methodology"`: `"GLEC"` (required)
* `"external_reference"`: A unique identifier that helps you link the resulting emissions to the requested item. Especially useful if multiple items are requested since SQUAKE cannot guarantee to keep the same order. The maximum length is 128 characters.
* `"origin"`: SQUAKE will try to resolve the origin/destination regardless of its format. Ideally, for addresses use the Post standard, for ports use UN/LOCODE codes (format: `^[A-Z]{2}\W?[A-Z2-9]{3}$`, e.g., `"DEHAM"`). You can also pass lat/long (format: `^[-+]?\d{1,3}\.\d{1,10}\s?,\s?[-+]?\d{1,3}\.\d{1,10}$`, e.g., `"+40.712,-74.006"`).
* `"destination"`: SQUAKE will try to resolve the origin/destination regardless of its format. Ideally, for addresses use the Post standard, for ports use UN/LOCODE codes (format: `^[A-Z]{2}\W?[A-Z2-9]{3}$`, e.g., `"DEHAM"`). You can also pass lat/long (format: `^[-+]?\d{1,3}\.\d{1,10}\s?,\s?[-+]?\d{1,3}\.\d{1,10}$`, e.g., `"+40.712,-74.006"`).
* `"distance_in_km"`: Prioritized over `origin` and `destination`. If you don't have a `distance_in_km`, you can use `origin` and `destination` and the distance will be automatically resolved. If you pass both `distance_in_km` and `origin`/`destination`, then `distance_in_km` will be used.
* `"weight_in_tonnes"`: Numeric value.
* `"vessel_type"`: GLEC defaults to `general_cargo_under_4999_dwt`. Values are `bulk_carrier_under_9999_dwt`, `bulk_carrier_under_34999_dwt`, `bulk_carrier_under_59999_dwt`, `bulk_carrier_under_99999_dwt`, `bulk_carrier_under_199999_dwt`, `bulk_carrier_above_200000_dwt`, `chemical_tanker_under_4999_dwt`, `chemical_tanker_under_9999_dwt`, `chemical_tanker_under_19999_dwt`, `chemical_tanker_under_39999_dwt`, `chemical_tanker_above_40000_dwt`, `general_cargo_under_4999_dwt`, `general_cargo_under_9999_dwt`, `general_cargo_under_19999_dwt`, `general_cargo_above_20000_dwt`, `liquefied_gas_tanker_under_49999_dwt`, `liquefied_gas_tanker_under_99999_dwt`, `liquefied_gas_tanker_under_199999_dwt`, `liquefied_gas_tanker_above_200000_dwt`, `oil_tanker_under_4999_dwt`, `oil_tanker_under_9999_dwt`, `oil_tanker_under_19999_dwt`, `oil_tanker_under_59999_dwt`, `oil_tanker_under_79999_dwt`, `oil_tanker_under_119999_dwt`, `oil_tanker_under_199999_dwt`, `oil_tanker_above_200000_dwt`, `other_liquids_tankers_under_999_dwt`, `other_liquids_tankers_above_1000_dwt`, `ferry_ropax_under_1999_dwt`, `ferry_ropax_under_4999_dwt`, `ferry_ropax_under_9999_dwt`, `ferry_ropax_under_19999_dwt`, `ferry_ropax_above_20000_dwt`, `refrigerated_bulk_under_1999_dwt`, `refrigerated_bulk_under_5999_dwt`, `refrigerated_bulk_under_9999_dwt`, or `refrigerated_bulk_above_10000_dwt`. Mapping `vessel_type` with `fuel_type` can be found [here](https://squake.notion.site/Sea-Freight-GLEC-f1ab939702824e78b1b2ec4c702d328e?pvs=4).
* `"energy_scope"`: Values are `ttw` or `wtw`. Default value is `wtw`.
* `"fuel_type"`: Values are `hfo`, `vlsfo`, or `mdo`. Default value is `hfo`. Mapping `vessel_type` with `fuel_type` can be found [here](https://squake.notion.site/Sea-Freight-GLEC-f1ab939702824e78b1b2ec4c702d328e?pvs=4).
* `"audit"`: boolean (optional). Set to `true` to create immutable audit records for finalized calculations. Must be enabled for your account.

#### **Default values**

* `“vessel_type”: "roro_fleet_average"`
* `“load_characteristic”: "average"`
* `“fuel_type”: "hfo"`
* `“energy_factor”: "wtw"`

### **Sample API Response**

```json
{
    "carbon_quantity": 713817,
    "carbon_unit": "gram",
    "items": [
        {
            "carbon_quantity": 713817,
            "carbon_unit": "gram",
            "external_reference": "test_2",
            "type": "sea_freight",
            "methodology": "GLEC",
            "distance": 883.0,
            "distance_unit": "kilometer",
            "algorithm_specifics": {
                "algorithm_type": "glec",
                "data": {
                    "co2e_in_g": 713817,
                    "co2e_emissions_wtw_in_g": 835318,
                    "co2e_per_tonne_km_in_g": 9,
                    "tonne_km": 75938,
                    "reporting_year": 2024,
                    "transportation_mode": "sea_transportation"
                }
            }
        }
    ]
}
```

Smart Freight Center helped us fine tune our calculations of all freight and logistics related operations in accordance with the GLEC framework.

### **Bibliography**

* Smart Freight Center (2024). Global Logistics Emissions Council Framework V3.1.
* Towards efficient and zero emissions (n.d.). Smart Freight Centre. Retrieved from <https://www.smartfreightcentre.org/en/>
