How do I calculate the emissions of one container shipped from India to Europe?

Multiply the cargo's gross weight in tonnes by the port to port sea distance in km, then by a well-to-wake container ship factor in kg CO2e per tonne-km. Add the truck or rail legs to and from the ports separately. If you only know the container count, use a per TEU-km factor and label it an estimate.

What to take from the bill of lading

• Port of loading and port of discharge, for example Nhava Sheva and Rotterdam. These fix the sea leg.
• Gross weight of the cargo in kg, which includes packaging. Do not add the container's tare weight; the ship factor already covers the box.
• Number and size of containers: a 20 ft box is 1 TEU, a 40 ft box is 2 TEU. You need this only for the per TEU method.
• Place of receipt and place of delivery, if printed. They tell you which road or rail legs to add.

Getting the sea distance right

The bill of lading does not print a distance. Use a port to port sea distance table or the carrier's own figure, and note which one. Nhava Sheva to Rotterdam is roughly 6,300 nautical miles through Suez, about 11,700 km. Ships diverted around the Cape of Good Hope sail roughly 10,500 nautical miles, about 19,400 km, so ask the carrier which route the vessel actually took. One nautical mile is 1.852 km.

Two methods, and when to use each

1. Tonne-km method (preferred): gross cargo weight in tonnes x sea distance in km x a well-to-wake container ship factor. ISO 14083 works this way, and it allocates the ship's emissions to you by the mass you shipped.
2. Per TEU method (fallback): number of TEU x distance x a trade lane factor in g CO2 per TEU-km, from the carrier or a published trade lane average. Use it when the weight is missing or the buyer asks for per container figures. Check whether the factor is tank-to-wake or well-to-wake, state which, and label the result an estimate.

Which legs belong in the figure

A door to door figure is the sum of every leg: factory to the Indian port by truck or rail, the sea leg, and port to buyer in Europe. Calculate each leg with its own mode, weight and distance. Whether the shipment sits in your Category 4 or the buyer's depends on who pays for that leg under your Incoterm, so tell the buyer which legs your number covers.

Worked example: one 20 ft container, Pune to Rotterdam via Nhava Sheva

• Bill of lading gross weight: 18,000 kg = 18 t, one 20 ft container (1 TEU)
• Sea leg: 18 t x 11,700 km = 2,10,600 tonne-km; x 0.0084 kg CO2e per tonne-km = 1,769.0 kg CO2e
• Road leg Pune to Nhava Sheva by tractor-trailer: 18 t x 150 km = 2,700 tonne-km; x 0.0551 kg CO2e per tonne-km = 148.8 kg CO2e
• Total to Rotterdam: 1,769.0 + 148.8 = 1,917.8 kg CO2e, about 1.92 t
• Same box around the Cape: 18 t x 19,400 km x 0.0084 = 2,933.3 kg CO2e for the sea leg alone

Factors are the default intensities for a container ship (0.0084) and a tractor-trailer (0.0551) per tonne-km, well-to-wheel, with typical empty running included, so no return trip is added. Distances are approximate. Replace both with your carrier's data for the trade lane.

What Senseible does here

Senseible reads freight records and calculates weight x distance x mode factor when the weight, distance and mode are on the document; a bill of lading has no distance, so the line shows Needs Data until you supply one from a port distance table or the carrier. The logistics calculator works out each leg per tonne-km by mode and Indian truck class, uses a carrier's factor as given and adds no extra empty return uplift.

• Logistics emissions calculator
• GLEC Framework explained
• Emissions from a road freight bill
• Incoterms and Category 4 or 9

Sources: GLEC Framework, logistics emissions accounting method, ISO 14083:2023, Quantification and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions arising from transport chain operations, Clean Cargo methodology and trade lane emission factors, Smart Freight Centre

Last reviewed 2026-10-17. Red Sea routing has changed sailing distances since 2024 and default factors are revised from time to time; check the route and factor for each shipment year.