The Low Carbon Building Initiative (LCBI) has launched a dedicated low-carbon certification scheme for logistics assets, covering 10 European countries including the UK.
LCBI Logistics provides a unified framework, including limit values, for measuring and recognising low-carbon logistics buildings, addressing what the organisation describes as a “proliferation of low-carbon claims with no verifiable basis” in the sector.
The certification also covers France, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Italy, the Czech Republic and Poland.
Logistics has been highlighted by LCBI as one of the most dynamic real estate segments and a significant contributor to global carbon emissions, yet it had previously lacked a dedicated European carbon-focused certification scheme.
The methodology has been developed since March 2025 by a consortium of real estate stakeholders including AEW, APRC Group, BNP Paribas Asset Management Alts, Baytree, GSE, Lidl, Virtuo Industrial Property, Groupe IDEC and STEF, with continuous input from the logistics industry through a partnership with AFILOG.
Coordinated by LCBI’s Technical Commission, led by ELAN, Artelia and Elioth, by Egis, the scheme builds on the expertise of the BBCA Association, which has over 10 years’ experience in building-related carbon emissions.
The methodology and limit values were tested across 18 case studies in Europe, while One Click LCA provided a dataset used to establish carbon performance thresholds. Certification will be audited independently by Certivea and Bureau Veritas.
Cécile Dap, LCBI director, said: “With the upcoming European regulations set to make carbon accounting increasingly mandatory, this standard is being launched at a strategic moment for the logistics sector. Under the revised Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD), life cycle assessment will become mandatory for all new buildings from 2030.
“By setting clear, measurable carbon performance criteria today, LCBI Logistics gives the sector a head start, so the actors are ready for increasingly demanding carbon standards before it becomes mandatory.”
Thierry Laquitaine, head of SRI Europe at AEW, said: “As an asset manager with a significant logistics portfolio across Europe, we need tools that allow us to assess, compare and report on the carbon performance of our assets constantly. LCBI Logistics provides a common language for the whole European industry, and a clear signal to the market that low-carbon logistics assets deserve to be valued differently.”
Tony Morais, managing director at Groupe IDEC Ingenierie, said: “At IDEC, reducing the carbon footprint of our developments is central to how we build. What LCBI Logistics brings is something we have been waiting for, which is an objective, third-party framework that makes our efforts visible and objectively comparable across Europe. For our clients and tenants, this certification scheme will serve as a driver for decision making.”
Main image: namtipStudio/Shutterstock
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