Industry-first program cuts supply chain emissions for freight rail customers
ATLANTA, March 31, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE:NSC) today launched RailGreen, a first-of-its-kind solution enabling customers to reduce emissions from their freight rail shipments. RailGreen makes Norfolk Southern the only freight railroad in the world to offer verified certificates for supply chain emissions reduction.
Shipping by rail versus truck reduces emissions 75% on average. Freight customers can address the remaining 25% of emissions through RailGreen. Emissions within a company's supply chain are one of the hardest to track and tackle. Developed in collaboration with 123Carbon — the leading, independent platform for book & claim — RailGreen makes it possible.
"Rail is already the most sustainable way to transport goods over land. RailGreen takes emissions savings to the next level," said Ed Elkins, Norfolk Southern EVP & Chief Commercial Officer. "RailGreen reduces customers' emissions, increases our biofuel use and solves a long-term industry challenge."
How RailGreen works
- Norfolk Southern's biofuel use is third-party certified, generating RailGreen certificates.
- Customers can purchase these certificates to apply toward their supply chain emissions.
- As customers purchase certificates, Norfolk Southern acquires more low-carbon biofuel for use across its operations.
RailGreen is designed to be scalable across multiple lanes in Norfolk Southern's network, allowing shippers to integrate sustainable solutions wherever they move freight on rail. Shippers, logistics providers, and supply chain leaders can take advantage of this industry-first program by visiting norfolksouthern.com/railgreen.
Verified and transparent way to reduce emissions
The RailGreen process uses 123Carbon's blockchain-backed Environmental Attribute Certificates (EACs) to certify that each ton of reduced CO₂e is uniquely tracked to prevent double counting.
End-to-end transparency ensures certificates verify the chain of custody across fuel providers, rail carriers, freight forwarders, and cargo owners. Third-party validation by independent assurance partners verifies carbon-reducing activities against international standards.
Jeroen Van Heningen, Managing Director, 123Carbon said: "We are proud to partner with Norfolk Southern to deliver verified, transparent emissions reduction to the freight rail industry. RailGreen represents a groundbreaking shift by providing real, measurable supply chain decarbonization for freight rail. Our blockchain-backed Environmental Attribute Certificates ensure every ton of reduced CO₂e is uniquely tracked and accounted for, providing shippers with confidence and credibility needed to meet their sustainability goals."
Norfolk Southern's commitment to sustainable fuels
RailGreen is part of Norfolk Southern's broader commitment to advancing low-carbon freight solutions including its support of biofuels. Those efforts include:
- More than doubling biofuel consumption from 2022 to reduce our locomotive emissions per gallon.
- Joining the Clean Fuels Alliance America to further support the production and shipping of biofuel-created products and feedstock.
- Elevating our connection with biofuels with increased transport of both biofuels and feedstocks.
- Using fuel-efficiency technologies to optimize locomotive performance and customer reporting.
- Launching and enhancing nature-based and community-driven programs to boost sustainability efforts.
About Norfolk Southern
Since 1827, Norfolk Southern Corporation (NYSE: NSC) and its predecessor companies have safely moved the goods and materials that drive the U.S. economy. Today, it operates a 22-state freight transportation network. Committed to furthering sustainability, Norfolk Southern helps its customers avoid approximately 15 million tons of yearly carbon emissions by shipping via rail. Its dedicated team members deliver approximately 7 million carloads annually, from agriculture to consumer goods. Norfolk Southern also has the most extensive intermodal network in the eastern U.S. It serves a majority of the country's population and manufacturing base, with connections to every major container port on the Atlantic coast as well as major ports across the Gulf Coast and Great Lakes. Learn more by visiting www.NorfolkSouthern.com.
About 123 Carbon
With over 50 global users, 123Carbon is the first independent platform for book & claim. It supports fuel suppliers, fleet operators, forwarders and cargo owners in the issuance, management and transfer of Environmental Attribute Certificates (EAC's) across all modalities and all technologies, including SAF. Next to the central registry, 123Carbon also offers a private Book & Claim solution that SAF suppliers and airlines can use to allocate company-branded SAF certificates to their customers in a private environment. This is also regarded as a critical instrument for forwarders that operate across different transport modes and are seeking a single solution to allocate their environmental benefits.
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SOURCE Norfolk Southern Corporation