At the NRL Group, sustainability continues to be a key focus of our social value strategy, so we are proud to announce that we have once again secured the Carbon Neutral International Standard for 2026. This accreditation demonstrates our ongoing commitment to reducing our environmental impact and managing unavoidable emissions responsibly.
Working with One Carbon World
Since 2021, we have partnered with One Carbon World to measure our carbon footprint annually and offset any unavoidable emissions. This process involves purchasing carbon credits to support global projects that help address climate change. Our commitment started with our 2020 emissions and has remained consistent year on year, reflecting our long-term sustainability strategy.
Continued progress in reducing emissions
Despite significant growth in our operations and business activities, our overall emissions remained stable when comparing 2024 and 2025 totals, recording 452 tCO2e in 2025 compared to 451.22 tCO2e in 2024.
What’s even more positive is the reduction we’ve achieved on a per-employee basis:
- A 10% reduction in CO2 per employee across the five-year period since 2020
- A 5.5% decrease from 2024 to 2025
These figures highlight the success of our environmental initiatives in achieving measurable improvements at an individual level.
Lower emissions from vehicle operations
Transport has always been a key area of focus, and this past year we have seen a noticeable drop in emissions from our fleet thanks to continued investment in electric vehicles within our Rail maintenance operations. Emissions from our vans fell from 267.29 tCO2e in 2024 to 235.44 tCO2e in 2025, demonstrating the tangible benefits of transitioning to cleaner vehicles.
Focusing on reductions before offsets
Our strategy is clear: to prioritise reducing emissions at the source rather than relying on offsets. Wherever possible, we look at how we can improve efficiency, adopt greener processes and support our teams to make sustainable choices.
This includes the work of our branch carbon champions who play an important role in raising awareness, driving environmental initiatives and engaging colleagues across the Group in practical steps to lower our carbon footprint.
Supporting global climate projects
For any remaining emissions that cannot currently be avoided, we chose to invest in carbon credit projects. This year, we have continued our support for a project that reduces greenhouse gas emissions in chemical and fertiliser production in India, through nitrous oxide abatement. These projects significantly reduce nitrous oxide – a potent greenhouse gas – from entering the atmosphere.
Our commitment for the future
Securing this certification for another year reaffirms our culture of protecting the environment for future generations. We will continue to identify opportunities to lower our emissions further and ensure our operations remain sustainable as we grow.
To learn more about our environmental and sustainability initiatives, visit the social value section of our website.
For transparency, AI has been used during the generation of this article, with every care taken to verify its accuracy.