Management approach and climate protection target

We aim to be climate-neutral by 2040. This puts our target five years ahead of the Federal Government’s target year for Germany becoming climate-neutral. A shift in the mode of transport towards rail is an essential key to achieving Germany’s climate protection targets. The low levels of friction generated by wheel-rail contact will also be the most efficient form of energy use in a largely electrified transport sector.

With regard to our definition of climate neutrality, we adhere to the net zero standard of the internationally recognized Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) and thus follow a 1.5°C pathway according to SBTi, which we have committed to in 2022. We submitted our climate protection targets for greenhouse gas emissions in Scope 1 to 3 to the SBTi in 2024. The validation was completed by the SBTi in February 2025 and confirmed our climate protection targets. The SBTi is an initiative that supports companies in setting science-based climate targets. SBTi targets are widely accepted as “science-based.”However, the SBTi methodology is subject to inherent uncertainties with regard to the underlying scientific findings and forward-looking assumptions on the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions required to achieve the 1.5°C target.

In 2023, we backed-up our climate protection target for the first time with annual greenhouse gas budgets for Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions for certain business units. We have thus created a clearly defined greenhouse gas reduction pathway for these business units and the own assets they use. To expand these greenhouse gas budgets to include greenhouse gas emissions from the upstream and downstream supply chain, we have developed a roadmap for managing and reducing Scope 3 emissions in 2024. To that end, fundamental drivers, levers and measures were identified that are to be implemented in the coming years. We have thus identified the material categories for DB Group from the 15 Scope 3 categories of the GHG Protocol:

• Scope 3.1 and 3.2: Greenhouse gas emissions from the purchase of goods and services as well as capital goods (based on orders placed in the respective year) such as construction activities and the procurement of trains or buses.
• Scope 3.3: Greenhouse gas emissions from energy- and fuel-related activities not included in Scope 1 and Scope 2. This includes, in particular, greenhouse gas emissions from the extraction, production and transport of fuels used in our own vehicles and stationary facilities and for the generation of electricity and district heating, as well as greenhouse gas emissions from the sale of electricity to third parties outside DB Group.
• Scope 3.4: Greenhouse gas emissions from transports and traffic commissioned by us.
• Scope 3.11: Greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels supplied by DB Energy to non-Group customers.

In 2024, we further developed our climate-related targets for DB Group:

• Until 2040:
  • Climate-neutrality according to our definition. To that end, we have set a net zero target based on the SBTi standard, i.e. a reduction of Scope 1 to 3 emissions by at least 90% compared to 2019. We aim to neutralize the difficult or otherwise unavoidable residual emissions of a minimum of 10% from 2040.
• Until 2029:
  • 66% of the suppliers (according to emissions volume) of the purchased goods and services/capital goods (Scope 3.1/3.2) of DB Group have science-based emissions targets, so-called supplier engagement targets.
• Until 2034:
  • –66% of Scope 1 and 2 emissions,
  • –40% of Scope 3.3 emissions (from energy and fuel-­related activities), and
  • –63% of DB Group’s Scope 3.11 emissions (from the use of fossil fuels sold) compared to 2019.

The base year 2019 was chosen because it was the last representative year before the Covid-19 pandemic and, according to SBTi, the base year may not be before 2015.

¹⁾ Includes DB Fahrzeuginstandhaltung GmbH from the Subsidiaries/Other area and DB Cargo AG and foreign subsidiaries without their stationary facilities of DB Cargo.
²⁾ Includes the material scope 3 categories 3.1, 3.2, 3.3, 3.4 and 3.11.  

As the sales process of DB Schenker had not yet been sufficiently advanced at the time of the start of the SBTi validation process, climate protection targets were also submitted to SBTi for the discontinued operationDB Schenker. The climate neutrality target for 2040 is in line with that of DB Group, excluding discontinued operations.

For Scope 1 to 3, separate interim targets were defined for DB Schenker:

• In Scope 1 and 2, the target of a 63% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2034 was set.
• In Scope 3, an interim target, a so-called supplier engagement target, was defined for the material Scope 3 category 3.4: 70.2% (according to emissions volume) of the logistics companies commissioned by DB Schenker should have science-based emissions targets by 2029.

Since 2024, absolute rather than specific greenhouse gas emissions from DB Group have been the focus of monitoring target achievement.

As a result of lower energy consumption due to lower volume produced and mild weather in 2024 as well as lower volumes of electricity and fossil fuels sold to external parties, DB Group already achieved the interim targets for Scope 3.3 and 3.11 in 2024.

We are relying on four strong levers on our way to becoming a climate-neutral DB Group:

• Increase in the share of renewable energies,
• diesel phase-out,
• implementation of the heat transition, and
• increasing energy efficiency.

Capital expenditures in our infrastructure and vehicles should have a positive impact on our climate footprint. For example, we simulate and evaluate rail journeys with alternative vehicle drives using our DB Eco Rail Simulator. The simulator uses digital twins of vehicles and infrastructure and supplements these with operational and environmental information such as climate data. With the help of physical-mathematical models, operating processes are analyzed with regard to energy consumption and performance, taking into account various driving modes and environmental conditions. The simulations are necessary because alternative drives have not yet reached the level of diesel vehicles in terms of range and energy recharging time and their infrastructure is much more complex. The simulator supports the optimization of operating processes and system design and thus contributes to the efficient use of resources (e.g. number of vehicles, infrastructure requirements, battery size, number of reserve batteries required).

Greenhouse gas emissions can be reduced in various ways through our use of resources. For example, we pilot and test new materials as part of innovation partnerships. Innovative processes are used for this, for example at our new ICE depot in Cottbus. CO₂-reduced concrete from Sonocrete is used there. This concrete contains up to 30% less cement clinker, which is particularly CO₂-intensive to produce, and therefore saves energy and greenhouse gas emissions during production. Thanks to the use of a special ultrasonic technology, the concrete has the same properties as conventional concrete despite having a lower cement clinker content.

For example, we also work with the start-up carbonauten. This produces biocarbon from biological waste materials, which is comparatively low in CO₂ and can be used in various areas of application, such as industry and construction. In terms of accounting, the resulting products store more carbon at the time of their use than was emitted during their production. In DB mindbox’s start-up program, the biocarbon was produced from waste wood pallets from our maintenance depots. This was used to produce prototypes of a more sustainable ICE seat shell and a tool case with 33% biocarbon content. This collaboration demonstrates the feasibility of large-format plastic parts with a sustainable and innovative material that can replace conventional plastics, for example in our ICE seats and depots. carbonauten aims to obtain certification for its products as proof of the contribution to climate protection.

On our path to climate neutrality, we are also in contact with our stakeholders and cooperate with foreign rail transport companies, for example, as part of Europe’s Rail initiative and in working groups of the Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER). We are also part of the UN Race to Zero initiative.