Sea freight
Calculate the emissions of sea freight shipments from the route or distance, the cargo weight and the vessel. SQUAKE supports four methodologies for sea freight.
Choose a methodology
| Methodology | Coverage | Basis | Inputs you need | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Clean Cargo | Trade lanes: panama, trans_atlantic, trans_suez, trans_pacific, other | Clean Cargo datasets (2025), harmonised with GLEC Framework v3.2 | origin and destination or distance_in_km, weight_in_tonnes; optional trade_lane, cargo_type, energy_scope | Only methodology that uses trade_lane. cargo_type is dry or reefer and defaults to reefer. |
| DIN EN 16258 | Not stated | DIN EN 16258 (March 2013) | origin and destination or distance_in_km, weight_in_tonnes; optional vessel_type, energy_scope | Only tanker and container vessels. The response includes energy (MJ) as well as emissions. |
| EMSA 🇪🇺 | Ships listed in the vessel database | EMSA CO2 emission reports, based on ships' operational data | origin and destination or distance_in_km, weight_in_tonnes; optional vessel_model, vessel_type, verifier_name, verifier_accreditation_number | Uses a specific ship's data. Without vessel_model or vessel_type, SQUAKE falls back to a default emission factor. |
| GLEC | Not stated | GLEC Framework v3.2 (2025) | origin and destination or distance_in_km, weight_in_tonnes; optional vessel_type, fuel_type, energy_scope | Vessel types by ship category and size in DWT. fuel_type is hfo, vlsfo or mdo. |
All four methodologies support audit records with audit.
How to decide
- Use EMSA when you know the actual ship (
vessel_model): it calculates from that ship's operational data rather than an average. - Use Clean Cargo for container shipments on a known trade lane, especially when you need to separate
dryfromreefercargo. - Use GLEC when you know the vessel category and size, or the fuel, but not the specific ship.
- Use DIN EN 16258 for tanker or container vessels when you want energy consumption in MJ alongside emissions.