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CNSHA NLRTM
Electronics

Shanghai to Rotterdam freight CO2 emissions

One tonne of cargo shipped Shanghai (CNSHA) to Rotterdam (NLRTM) by sea emits 147 kg CO2e well-to-wake at GLEC v3.2 default factors. The same tonne by air emits 5,654.4 kg — roughly 38x the sea number.

Lane noteAsia-Europe headhaul deep-sea via Suez. Post-2023 Red Sea Houthi attacks forced most Asia-Europe carriers around the Cape of Good Hope, adding ~3,500 nautical miles per loop and ~25% to per-voyage CO2.

Per-tonne CO2e by mode

Sea freight

Container ship 8,000-15,000 TEU

147
kg CO2e
Distance
19,600 km
Factor (WTW)
7.5 g CO2e/tkm
Per shipment
1 t × 19,600 km
Factor source
GLEC v3.2 container 8,000-15,000 TEU (Post-Panamax, WTW)

Rail freight

Mixed-traction intermodal rail

313.6
kg CO2e
Distance
11,200 km
Factor (WTW)
28 g CO2e/tkm
Per shipment
1 t × 11,200 km
Factor source
GLEC v3.2 mixed-traction intermodal rail (WTW)

Air freight

Long-haul belly cargo

5,654.4
kg CO2e
Distance
9,300 km
Factor (WTW)
608 g CO2e/tkm
Per shipment
1 t × 9,300 km
Factor source
GLEC v3.2 long-haul belly cargo allocation (WTW)

Mode comparison

On the Shanghai to Rotterdam lane, air freight emits about 38 times more CO2e per tonne than sea freight at GLEC v3.2 defaults. The gap is driven by the WTW factor difference between long-haul belly cargo (608 g CO2e/tkm) and a Container ship 8,000-15,000 TEU (7.5 g CO2e/tkm), partly offset by the shorter great-circle air routing.

Where rail is viable on this lane, it sits between sea and road — see the per-mode card above for the exact split.

Try this in the calculator

These numbers are GLEC v3.2 defaults at 1 tonne. Change weight, vessel class, or load factor in the calculator and see the per-mode CO2e update under ISO 14083:2023 data quality tiers.

Methodology references

Need primary-data emissions for Shanghai to Rotterdam?

The EcoFreight API ingests AIS, bunker delivery notes, and shipment manifests to return ISO 14083 Tier 3 primary-data numbers for the same lane. Free tier covers 1,000 calculations per month.