ITJInternationalTransportJournal

SpecialsBalkan States 23

Turkey 28

Looking eastwardsOrange sun rising –talking with WolfgangNiessner, Gebrüder Weiss 14

Delivering the goodsAll three terminals inthe port of Piraeus withbetter figures in 2013 25

Distributing boxesMartin Haller of SBB Cargoelaborates on plans for thenew Basel Nord terminal 32

07 · 08 | 14 February 2014www.transportjournal.com

ENGLISH EDITION(also available in an identical

German and French version)

3International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Contents

Balkan States 23Turkey 28

Specials in issue

Downward spiral 9

Instead of an upswing the fourth quarter of2013 brought declining volumes for the shippingindustry. This was sobering news for the lines, onthe one hand, but nevertheless did not result inconsistent capacity adjustments.

Early days full of surprises 22

Iata is currently commemorating the establish-ment of the world’s first scheduled passengerflight 100 years ago. Its «small world, big future»motto would also have been a suitable title forour gem from the ITJ’s 1940s archives.

Between the worlds 29

Turkey sees itself as an intermediary betweeneast and west. The establishment of a regularcontainer train running between Istanbul andPakistan is set to improve regional links andclose gaps in the transcontinental infrastructure.

Cover: Intermodal handling activities. Photo: Thinkstock

23

International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

Balkan States Special

In many Balkan countries, trade and

logistics services are on the rise. In July

2013, Croatia became a member state of

the European Union, the second Bal-

kan state, after Slovenia joined in 2004.

Trade between the Balkan states and the

European Union – which is the leading

partner both for imports (61%) and ex-

ports (65%) – has been increasing steadily

since 2010. Preferential trade agreements

between the EU and the Balkan coun-

tries are designed to promote this devel-

opment. These treaties will be in force

until 2015.Many smaller projects are under way

to further transport and logistics services

in this multi-faceted region. A Western

Balkans trade logistics project is a notable

case in point. It was initiated in 2012 by

the World Bank and the EU, and is to be

implemented by June 2014. The project,

which covers Albania, Bosnia and Her-

zegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, FYR Mac-

edonia, Montenegro and Serbia, aims to

speed up customs handling procedures,

standardise regulations for working times

and opening hours and promote online

communications between countries.

The measures focus primarily on three

major trade routes. One stretches from

Skopje to Sarajevo, one from Podgorica

to Serbia’s northern border and one from

the port of Durres to Pristina. Another

objective is to provide the inland states in

the Balkans with access to the Mediterra-

nean, to help improve the reliability and

performance of supply chains between

the coast and the interior, as well as to

reduce the high level of bureaucracy. Cur-

rently, physical inspections of goods by

customs can take up to two weeks.

Meanwhile, the project has spread its

wings across borders. During a workshop

in Belgrade in November 2013, the pri-

vate businesses network Pro Danube In-

ternational was given the opportunity

to illustrate the administrative obstacles

which continue to impede inland ship-

ping routes through the many countries

bordering the Danube.

The International Finance Corpora-

tion (IFC), a member of the World Bank

Group, is now considering the option of

launching its own initiative to improve

the situation.

Unresolved conflicts

In some areas, on the other hand, prepa-

rations for the unconditional economic

integration of the region, which is essen-

tial for trade to prosper, have run into

difficulties. In December 2013 blockades

were set up at the border between Serbia

and Kosovo, with the specific purpose of

interrupting the free flow of goods across

the frontier, not passenger traffic.

An enduring dispute between Bulgaria

and Turkey with regard to transit traffic

also reached a new level recently. After

Sofia issued only a fraction of the usual

number of permits for Turkish forwarders

for 2014, Turkey introduced restrictions

for the Bulgarian transport and logistics

industry on 31 January 2014, whereupon

the Bulgarian government closed the bor-

der for all Turkish trucks on 1 February.

This dispute is being played out before

the background of Bulgaria’s long-stand-

ing wish to increase its share of transit

trade to and from Western Europe. So far,

the parties have not been able to reach an

agreement, which has led to a long tail-

back of trucks waiting at frontier cross-

ings, such as the one between Kapikule

and Kapitan Andreevo. These events are

a repetition of delays caused by a previous

disagreement that took place in 2013 (see

ITJ 35-36/2013, page 50).

Thus the competition for market share

in the Balkans continues, by fair means

or foul. The prospect of gaining access

to the EU’s markets is the key to further

economic progress.Christian Doepgen

Mixed fortunes for economic development in the Balkans

Slowly improving?Trade between the EU and some Balkan states has been increasing since 2010. Some

efforts, such as a trade logistics project for the Western Balkans, can be considered

harbingers of recovery. There are setbacks, too, as a Bulgarian-Turkish dispute shows.

Poor goods flows at some borders.

Phot

o:Za

man

Wherever You Need us!

GRUPPO

NUOVA TRANSPORTSNuova Transports

S.p.AConcorezzo Nuova Transports

International S.r.l.Torino

Nuova Transports

Adriatica S.r.l.

Civitanova Marche

International Transport & Logistics

www.gruppont.com

In some areas, on the other hand, prepa-

rations for the unconditional economic

integration of the region, which is essen-

tial for trade to prosper, have run into

difficulties. In December 2013 blockades

were set up at the border between Serbia

and Kosovo, with the specific purpose of

interrupting the free flow of goods across

the frontier, not passenger traffic.

An enduring dispute between Bulgaria

and Turkey with regard to transit traffic

also reached a new level recently. After

Sofia issued only a fraction of the usual

number of permits for Turkish forwarders

for 2014, Turkey introduced restrictions

for the Bulgarian transport and logistics

industry on 31 January 2014, whereupon

the Bulgarian government closed the bor-the Bulgarian government closed the bor-

der for all Turkish trucks on 1 February.

This dispute is being played out before

the background of Bulgaria’s long-stand-

ing wish to increase its share of transit

trade to and from Western Europe. So far,

the parties have not been able to reach an

agreement, which has led to a long tail-

back of trucks waiting at frontier cross-

ings, such as the one between Kapikule

and Kapitan Andreevo. These events are

a repetition of delays caused by a previous

disagreement that took place in 2013 (see

ITJ 35-36/2013, page 50).

Thus the competition for market share

in the Balkans continues, by fair means

or foul. The prospect of gaining access

to the EU’s markets is the key to further

economic progress.Christian Doepgen

Poor goods flows at some borders.

Phot

o: Z

aman

Wherever You Need us!Wherever You Need us!

Nuova Transports

International S.r.l.Torino

International Transport & LogisticsInternational Transport & Logistics

www.gruppont.comwww.gruppont.com

New box train to link Turkey and Pakistan

Betweenthe worldsTurkey has long considered itself a bridge between Eastand West. The commencement of regular container trainoperations between Istanbul and Pakistan’s Islamabad isexpected to create more infrastructural integration.

Negotiations between the EU and Turkey concerningthe country’s accession to the union are dragging on.Though there is some hope in Ankara that the recentstate visit by François Hollande, who became the firstFrench president to journey to the country for 22 years,will renew the dynamism of the process, there are simul-taneously no illusions there that Turkey’s path to joiningthe European Union might be a difficult one.In the meantime the country is looking closely atthe East as well, where stronger economic cooperationwith nations there seems in reach. Turkey’s prime min-ister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Pakistani colleagueNawaz Sharif have plans to sign an agreement concern-ing preferential trade arrangements in the first quarter ofthe year. Erdogan has stated that trade between the twocountries currently is not commensurate with the «closeties» they have traditionally enjoyed, which is why theywant to «significantly intensify» cooperation.Expansion of Turkey’s natural hinterland?One important element of these plans is establishingregular operations on an Islamabad–Teheran–Istanbulcontainer train, under the auspices of the EconomicCooperation Organization (Eco), of which Turkey andIran are members. They believe that this scheme will im-prove trade links between the two countries and also re-sult in greater economic integration in the entire region.A test train ran on a transasian railway line linkingAlmaty (Kazakhstan) up with Istanbul (Turkey) in 2002.Now the development of an international passenger andfreight corridor in the Eco region is one of the alliance’skey priorities. Eco is an international body that works

Istanbul’s significance as a bridge between East and West is set to grow.

Phot

o:Th

inks

tock

to improve collaboration between its members in the fields of trade,investment and tourism. Its member states are Afghanistan, Azerbaijan,Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmeni-stan and Uzbekistan.

Our readers will have noticed that seven of the ten members statesare landlocked countries, a fact which Turkey hopes will lead to thefurther expansion of its natural hinterland. Furthermore, the idea ofopening the Marmaray tunnel, which was inaugurated in October 2013,to railfreight operations in the medium term, too, has also been mootedrecently.

Antje Vereggewww.ecosecretariat.org

New DAL sailings to TurkeyThe shipping line Deutsche Afrika-Linien (DAL) addedsailings from Europe to the Turkish ports of Izmir, Mar-port, Yilport and Mersin to its network in January. Thenew options form part of DAL’s South African EuropeContainer Service network (Saecs) and also offer calls atLondon Gateway, Rotterdam, Antwerp, Bremerhaven,Hamburg and Algeciras.

avwww.dal.biz

29

International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

Turkey Special

We care, We handle,We move... Worldwide

OUR SERVICES:• BENELUX• DENMARK• EASTERN EUROPE• FINLAND• GERMANY• GREAT BRITAIN• GREECE• IRELAND• NORWAY• BALTIC COUNTRIES• SPAIN• SWEDEN• SWITZERLAND• TURKEY• AIR FREIGHT SERVICE• SEA FREIGHT SERVICE

www.itxcargo.com

ITX Cargo S.r.l.Viale Espinasse, 1631-20156 MILANO, ITALYTel: +39 02 300.92.1Fax: +39 02 33.49.91.45E-mail: info@itxcargo.comP.IVA: IT04776230965

ITX Cargo Veneto S.r.lVia dell’Esperanto, 13/A1-37135 VERONA, ITALYTel: +39 045 862.29.55Fax: +39 045 862.29.59E-mail: info@itxcargoveneto.comP.IVA: IT13219370155

ITX Cargo Overseas S.r.l.Viale Espinasse, 1631-20156 MILANO, ITALYTel: +39 02 87.25.18.1Fax: +39 02 87.25.18.99E-mail: info@overseas-itxcargo.comP.IVA: IT07500290965

5 Editorial

6 People & Companies

7 Comment

8 Hazardous Goods8 Towards comprehensive regulations

9 Shipping & Ports10 Uncertainty in US ports despite rise in imports11 ICTSI investing in African terminals

12 Aviation12 India, Russia and the USA in the spotlight13 London asking question about its hubs13 Turkish Airways expanding its network

14 Forwarding & Logistics14 Gebrüder Weiss presence in the east growing16 Dimotrans takes over Phoenix Europe Express17 Initial annual results published, most positive

18 Automotive19 Cuxport ships British cars by rail

20 Rail / Inland Shipping /Road Haulage20 Italy and Switzerland aligning networks20 Liquefied gas for lorries21 Inland port of Duisburg growing21 Belgian-Turkish rail collaboration

22 Looking back at 75 years of the ITJ

23 Balkan States23 Regional developments not uniform

28 Turkey30 New gantry cranes for Yilport’s Gemlik terminal

32 Focus on Switzerland32 In conversation with SBB Cargo’s Martin Haller

33 Regional Focus

34 Miscellaneous /Masthead

35 A Time for Reflection /Advertisers’ Index

KIFA AG, Kapellstrasse 6, CH-8355 Aadorf | Märstetten | Uzwil | T +41 52 368 41 21 | www.kifa.ch

SAFETY FIRSTMaking sure your freight arrives in perfect condition. Our packagingservice provides professional packaging – without compromise.Your confidence is well placed with us!

KIFA – naturallywell packed.

Register Now and Save! www.Breakbulk.com/chinaevent

March 10-13, 2014

Shanghai World Expo Exhibition& convEntion cEntEr

Shanghai, china

Education, Career Advancement,Networking and Business Development.

ExhibitoRSSpace is limited! Contact ustoday!

Unparalleled face-to-facenetworking with over 4,500attendees. Showcase yourproducts/services withtargeted Exhibition, Sponsor &Advertising opportunities.

Contact

GaryTanggtang@Breakbulk.comfor more information.

Visit:www.Breakbulk.com/chinaevent

ACCoMMoDAtioNS,ViSAS,REgiStRAtioNWe’re here to answerquestions and make yourregistration easy.

to find what you need and forcontact information, visitwww.Breakbulk.com/chinaevent

Attend Breakbulk China 2014, the largest conference &exhibition in Asia, where you’ll find the solutions, knowledgeand strategies that will shape your success in 2014.

Join us for a 4-day intensive program that delivers thekey content for career advancement and businessdevelopment.

Network & meet with top vendorsExplore new solutions from over 150 exhibitors and sponsorsthat provide services that meet the industry’s uniquerequirements.

Executive Presentations & Case StudiesMajor issues are covered with regional insight that can helpyou capitalize on the project cargo opportunities in Chinaand the surrounding region.

Workshops for all experience levelsAdvanced Krabbendam heavy transport & LiftingMasterclass March 10-11

Intermediate PPg Certificate in Project ForwardingMarch 10-11

Introductory breakbulk Education Day March 11

5International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Editorial

Dear readersThe global freight forwarding and logistics industry is not

only an important sector with a crucial role to play for the

entire economy, it is also an extremely fascinating service

industry, and one which frequently provides us with new and

interesting insights into a diverse range of trade and indus-

trial production activities.

If you take time to talk to experienced forwarders and

logisticians, people who are dedicated neck and crop to the

profession, and if you ask them what fascinates them in the –

admittedly very broad range – of their work, then the answers

are frequently similar. Transport, forwarding and logistics

represent an international, multicultural, dynamic and ever-

changing life style. Logistics is simultaneously also an inter-

esting trade because the people working in it have to deal,

primarily, with people. Logistics is the true people business.

This is partially because increasingly complex processes, new

technologies and the increasing demands of customers mean

that ever-more comprehensive job specifications are called for

by the industry. On the other hand, it is also down to the fact

that logistics solutions have to be created anew every day – by

people.

So far, so good.

But in the logistics industry the differences between upstairs

(the managers’ floor) and downstairs (where warehouse work-

ers might work) are intensifying – as they are in other indus-

tries too. The tasks that logistics managers have to perform

and the requirements needed to carry them out are becoming

ever more demanding, which is why lateral entrants from

academia have also gained a foothold in logistics. Simulta-

neously there are more and more areas of

work in the industry that require workers

to accept questionable and monotonous

working conditions, frequently

in the CEP segment’s dispatch

and logistics centres. Logis-

tics companies are thus well

advised to keep a good eye

on the growing distance be-

tween managers, and work-

ers with fewer qualifications.

Robert AltermattHead of Forwarding & Logistics

Available exclusively from SPMcreative

A large, top-classWorld Cup planner

70 x 70 cm, with insertable strips. Have your ownlogo imprinted on print runs of 500 or more.

Information and inquiries : marc.bornschein@s-p-m.ch

We promise rapid delivery. All orders placed by

mid-March will be delivered by the end of April.

spmcreativeGermanyGermany

Brazil

Brazil

Italy

Italy

CameroonCameroon

USAUSA

SpainSpain

Switzerland

EuropePurwin new CEOAdam Purwin has been named as the newCEO of PKP Cargo. The corporation’s for-mer CFO, who took interim charge of therailfreight operator after the departure ofCEO Lukasz Boron in November 2013,prevailed against a field of 14 competi-tors, according to PKP Cargo’s supervisoryboard. Purwin, whose background is in Polish financialinstitutions, joined PKP Cargo in 2012. He was involvedin the privatisation strategy of PKP Cargo, and was amember of the IPO team that prepared the companyfor public offering.

Swissport appoints top managers

Swissport has chosen Tommy Watt as its new executivevice-president for the UK and Ireland. Watt thus joinsSwissport International’s executive management teamand reports directly to group president and CEO PerH. Utnegaard. Watt, who joined Servisair at Glasgowairport in 1976, has been asked to implement the mergerof Swissport and Servisair, which launched in December.

José Canales has moved to Swissport from Panalpina.He will look after the firm’s Latin American activitiesand be in charge of all ground and cargo handling activi-ties there. He’ll report directly to Juan José Andres Alvéz,vice-president for Europe, Africa and Latin America.

New face for Gefco

Gefco’s Central Europe, Balkan Peninsula and MiddleEast unit is to be managed by Pierre-Jean Lorrain infuture. Lorrain’s appointment will reinforce the group’spresence in the region, a process which already startedwith the establishment of branch offices in Croatia andthe UAE last year. Lorrain, who worked as head of IT atUnilog early in his career, has served Gefco for 20 years.From 2006 to 2010 he was head of a distribution depart-ment in Courbevoie (France), and then became directorgeneral of the company’s national subsidiary in Italy.

Another departure at Cargolux

Cargolux COO Peter van de Pas has decided to leave theairline on 31 March this year. Van de Pas, who previouslyworked for KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, became COOof Cargolux in 2009. No successor has been named yet.A week ago Robert van de Weg, another member of theboard, resigned (see ITJ 05-06/2014, page 7). Cargoluxhas underlined its intentions of sticking to its 12 Febru-ary deadline for applications from candidates for thepost of CEO. The current interim CEO, Richard Forson,took his role in August 2012. The carrier’s directors andmanagement thanked van de Pas for his efforts.

SBB in French-speaking region

Donatella del Vecchio will take up her duties as mediaspokesperson for Switzerland’s state railway SBB on 1February 2014. She will work in at the SBB headquartersin Bern and strengthen the media team for the country’sFrench-speaking region. Del Vecchio succeeded PatriciaClaivaz, who left the railway on 31 December 2013. Un-til that date Del Vecchio was in charge of the press andpreventive measures office of the cantonal police forcein Fribourg. The French-speaking team at the SBB mediaoffice will now consist of Del Vecchio, based in Bern,and Frédéric Revaz and Jean-Philippe Schmidt, basedin Lausanne.

New head of refrigerated logistics

Erik Osinga has been selected as Damco’snew global head of fresh sector activities(refrigerated logistics), supporting thecompany’s retail business. Osinga joinedDamco in 2009 and previously held rolesas regional head of reefer activities inEurope and regional head of perishablesin North America. Osinga’s professionalbackground is in the international foodtrade, and he has worked for Berry Gardensin the Netherlands, and also as a controllerfor Triodos Investment Management. Hewill report to Damco’s global head of retailbusiness, Hans Elmegaard.

Adam PurwinPhoto: PKP Cargo

Eric OsingaPhoto: Damco

6 People & Companies International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

Independent International Freight Forwarding& Logistics Specialists

at your disposal in 21 European Countries

e-mail: info@ ifa-forwarding.netwww.ifa-forwarding.net

AUSTRIA – BELGIUM – BULGARIA - CZECH REPUBLIC – DENMARKESTONIA – FINLAND – FRANCE – GERMANY – GREAT BRITAIN

HUNGARY – ITALY – NETHERLAND – NORWAY – POLAND – ROMANIASWEDEN – SLOVENIA – SPAIN – SWITZERLAND – TURKEY

Independent International Freight Forwarding &Logistics Experts at your disposal

in the European Countries

E-mail: info@ifa-forwarding.net | www.ifa-forwarding.net

AUSTRIA | BELGIUM | BULGARIA | CZECH REPUBLIC | DENMARKESTONIA | FINLAND | FRANCE | GERMANY | GREAT BRITAIN | GREECE

HUNGARY | IRELAND | ITALY | LATvIA | LITHUANIA | MALTANETHERLAND | NORWAY | PORTUGAL | POLAND | ROMANIA | SLOvAKIA

SLOvENIA | SPAIN | SWEDEN | SWITZERLAND | UKRAINE

AfricaThibault takes chargeArnaud Thibault, who was regional and managing di-rector of CMA CGM South Africa for five years, waspromoted to deputy vice-president Africa Lines (part ofthe CMA CGM Group) at the end of January. He will bebased at the Marseilles headquarters. Estève Servajean,deputy vice-president in charge of the African agencynetwork, became regional director and managing direc-tor of CMA CGM South Africa at the end of January.

AsiaCEO for Air SeychellesManoj Papa is the new CEO of Air Sey-chelles. He will succeed Cramer Ball. Papa isjoining Air Seychelles from South AfricanAirways (SAA), where he was acting gener-al manager. He was instrumental in devel-oping SAA’s long-term turnaround. Papastarted his career with SAA, then joinedEtihad Airways in 2007, later serving asvice-president of corporate strategy beforereturning to SAA in 2012. Joel Morgan,the transport minister of the Seychellesand chairman of Air Seychelles, welcomedPapa’s appointment from 1 March.

Reshuffle at K LineThe Japanese carrier K Line is restructuring its organisa-tion from 31 March, the end of the Japanese fiscal year2013. Takashi Saeki, a vice-president executive officer, aswell as Keisuke Yoshida and Masami Sasaki, both seniormanaging executive officers, will retire from their posi-tions and become directors of K Line. Yoshiyuki Aoki,a managing executive officer, will give up his positionat the same time. Makoto Arai, an executive officer, willbecome the general manager of the legal group. KiyokazuArai, an executive officer, will take up the post of generalmanager in the general affairs group, and Ako Hiraoka,also an executive manager, will become general managerof the Nagoya branch. Executive officer Takafumi Kidowill be promoted to director of K Line (Europe).

CongratulationsPort of Dunkirk has a new boardFrançois Soulet de Brugière is the president of the newsupervisory board of the port of Dunkirk. His vice-pres-ident is Wulfran Despicht, an assistant to the mayor ofDunkirk. Fifteen other board members were appointed.

Manoj PapaPhoto: Air Seychelles

CommentAt the races in the year of the horseThe Western world’s new year is alreadya few weeks old, but China’s new «Yearof the Horse» only started on 31 January.The omens associated with the horse aregood, as it is one of the Chinese people’sfavourite animals – symbolising travels,competition and victory. The horse issupposed to endow one with leadershipqualities (as is the dragon), which theChinese associate closely with nationaleconomic growth.

Analysts believe that the economy will «only» grow by7.5% this year, which is 0.2 percentage points less thanin the previous year. In a global comparison this figurenevertheless makes the People’s Republic a world leader.Economists expect the national economies of the UnitedStates of America and those in the euro area to reportbetter figures this year — even if 2.8% growth in the USAand 1% in Europe represents augmentation at a com-pletely different level than in China.

This should actually represent good news for the ship-ping industry. Shipping lines do not seem set to once againadjust their deployed tonnage to the market conditionsin 2014. The analyst Alphaliner has stated that in mid-January, 219 vessels with a total capacity of 693,000 teuwere laid up — which means that there was 86,200 teumore capacity in the market than two weeks earlier.

Instead of terminating complete services, lines areincreasingly merely cancelling individual sailings, particu-larly of vessels with capacities of 8,000 teu or more. Thispractice is not owed to rising demand, however. Rather,lines are keeping an even beadier eye than usual on thedevelopment of their market shares. Why? Because besidesthe impending implementation of the P3 Network, the G6Alliance is now also planning to expand its activities. Inaddition to its options on the Far East–Northern Europerace track, the group also wants to offer alternatives inthe transatlantic and transpacific trade lanes in future. Inthis context, those lines that are not part of a cooperationarrangement will particularly desist from reducing theirsailings, with the concomitant risk of losing market sharesin this respect.

Alphaliner assumes that tonnage encompassing a totalof 1.6 million teu will enter the market in 2014. In 2013this figure came in at 1.39 million teu. Drewry, in turn,has reported that the average size of ships deployed in theeast–west trade has reached more than 10,500 teu in themeantime. As the average age of postpanamax units is lessthan eight years, the industry does not expect any massivescrapping of ships.

The wave of newbuildings will continue to slosh intothe market this year. UASC has just announced that itwill use an option from last summer for the construction ofsix more ULCVs, with a capacity of 14,000 teu each.

The race is on. Which horse are you betting on?

Antje HannaVeregge,ITJ editor

7International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 People & Companies

Trend 2 – ModerationThis trend could be taking hold in the field of specialas well as packing regulations. For instance, special pro-visions in the regulations that apply to shipments byroad and rail provide an exemption for goods classed asUN 3166, which applies to internal combustion enginesand engines powered by inflammable gas or combus-tion. The IMDG code governing maritime traffic alsocontains a special provision that exempts UN 3166 itemswith empty fuel tanks and their batteries removed.

Trend 3: HarmonisationThe main trend is harmonisation of regulations. TheUN number is the key instrument used in an attemptto iron out inconsistencies. The globally-recognisedUN numbers are the sole binding numbering schemeacross all regulations. Nevertheless, there are still unclearand unresolved issues with UN numbers. For instance,UN 9002 for materials with self-ignition temperaturesof 200°C or less, and UN 9003 for materials with flashpoints between 60–100°C, are included in ADN but notin ADR/RID, as the numbers in the latter end at 3999.

Materials classed as UN 2807, magnetised material,are prohibited by Iata DGR for their negative influenceon avionics, but not prohibited on roads (ADR) or rail(RID). In road and rail traffic, UN 1327, hay or straw, isnot considered dangerous goods, but is included in theIMDG code, as it is considered an inflammable load. Allregulations contain exemptions for limited and exceptedquantities (LQ/EQ ). In 2012 the USA adopted its globalharmonisation system (GHS) – called the CLP regula-tion in Europe – for its sovereign territories around theworld. That is a huge step forward for globalisation.

The conclusion – four sub-regulations, not one codeAll these trends point in a clear direction, toward thecreation of a single regulation in the future which willunify all of the modes of transport and contain a singleclassification system. Until then, however, at least fourseparate regulations apply, with all of their quirks anddifferences.

By Eberhard Küpfer, security expert, hazardous goods andwaste disposal lecturer for logistics, ABB Technikerschule.

www.abbts.ch

Adapting dangerous goods regulations

Hazardous goods trendsGraduates with advanced logistics degrees are no strangers to hazardous

goods. The past few years have shown that dangerous goods regulations

are adapted to meet certain situations and are rarely thought through.

Usually, issues are initially addressed in dangerous goods regulationswith very tight restrictions, which are then smoothed over in two tofour years and adapted to reality. But what trends have emerged?

Trend 1 – Initially restrictive, followed by normalisationThis trend is clearly evident in ADR tunnel regulations. At first, all ofthe large and important tunnels were categorised as code E, but nowrestrictions have loosened so that the codes have either been relaxedor, for some tunnels, eliminated altogether.

Restrictions on dry ice, solid form (CO2), is headed in the samedirection. Senders or dispatchers of dry ice are permitted to conducttheir own assessments of the degree of imminent danger their shipmentspose. In the wake of a multilateral agreement signed by numerous coun-tries in an effort to defend themselves against the restrictive approachto regulations in 2013, new adjustments are coming to the ADR, RID,and ADN regulations starting in 2015. Similar changes are on the wayin regulations that apply to lithium batteries.

Transporters have to be alert for hazardous goods exceptions.

Phot

o:D.

Law

renc

e

8 Hazardous Goods International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

weitere

infos

www.abbts.ch

>

The relationship between the supply of anddemand for cargo space on the most impor-tant trade route between Asia and NorthernEurope is set to remain in the spotlight forliner shipping companies this year. TheEnglish analyst Drewry has taken initialstock of 2013 – and come to a soberingconclusion.

The volume of goods transported fromAsia to Europe, already at a pretty lowlevel in 2013, once again «dropped signif-icantly» in October and November, ac-cording to Drewry. This development, thefirm said, points to the fact that the highexpectations associated with the peak sea-son had been based on false hopes.

Wholesalers’ and retailers’ expectationsof the overall impact of Christmas shop-ping were obviously too optimistic. Whilstthe volume of cargo grew by an average of6% per month (or 817,000 teu) from thesecond to the third quarters, it settled in

at an average of 693,000 teu a month inOctober and November, which representsa decline of 15%.

Drewry admits that it has generally be-come more difficult to say what «normal»volumes for any particular year might be,since the onset of the drop in world trade in2008. The reduction in the cargo load hadcome in at around 10% a year on averagein the past, with increased demand beforethe Chinese new year generally playing alarge role.

Too high expectationsThedownturnincargovolumesinOctoberand November resulted in growth for 2013amounting to a mere 2%, in comparisonwith the like-for-like period in the previousyear. This is likely to be well below whatshipping lines had expected.

As Drewry has shown, 33 newbuildingswith a capacity of more than 10,000 teu

each joined the global fleet of merchantnavy ships last year. The average size ofthe new entrants into the market stoodat 14,000 teu. Thus the share of ships de-signed to carry more than 10,000 teu hasnow reached 22.5% overall – with mostof these plying their trade between Asiaand Europe.

ImbalanceOne of the problems arising for the freightrate level in this context is that shippinglines are cancelling ever more individualsailings, instead of terminating completeservices. The aim is to regulate the relation-ship between supply and demand.

Drewry has ascertained that the overallcapacity of all ships sailing on the routebetween Asia and Northern Europe fellby approximately 1.4% from Septemberto October, and then by another 1.1% inNovember. As a result, the utilisation rateof vessels deployed in this trade slid from92% in September to a mere 88% in Oc-tober, and again dipped dramatically to81.5% in November.

Unsurprisingly enough, this develop-ment is reflected by rate levels. The WorldContainer Index (WCI) was subject to asudden surge, on account of growth indemand just before the Chinese new year.This led to a capacity utilisation rate of90–95%. Since the end of January thiscurve has been steadily moving down-wards again, however.

Antje Vereggewww.drewry.co.uk

Volumes declining, but no reduction of capacities

The downward spiral continuesAlthough the cargo volume results for 2013 have not been finalised yet, one thing is already pretty clear now: the fourth quarter

did not offer liner shipping companies the hoped-for respite, but brought declining volumes. This was a sobering state of affairs

for many lines – but it nevertheless did not result in an adjustment of companies’ tonnages.

Boxes piled high in China, just before the country’s new year in January. Overall, hoped-for growth remained a pipe dream in 2013, however.

Phot

o:Th

inks

tock

World Container Index – Shanghai–Rotterdam container freight rates (USD / feu)

Sour

ce:W

orld

Cont

aine

rInd

ex/D

rew

ry

4,000

3,500

3,000

2,500

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

Jan Feb

March

April

MayJun

eJul

yAug Se

pt Oct Nov Dec

2012 2013 2014

9International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Shipping & Ports

10 Shipping & Ports International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

US container imports up

Prospects gloomydespite good figures?The IMF sees the US economy growing by just under 3%

this year. Moody’s, in turn, projects that the country’s

ports nevertheless have a difficult twelve months ahead.

The port of Los Angeles registered total throughput of7.87 million teu in 2013, 2.6% less than in the previous year.

Phot

o:Po

rtof

Los

Ange

les

US business activity is expected to be one of the keyfactors driving global growth in 2014, according to theInternational Monetary Fund (IMF). The body recentlypredicted that the world’s largest national economy willgrow by 2.8% in 2014. In October economists had pro-jected US growth of only about 2.6% for the year.

The volume of containers imported into the USA in2013 – around 18.2 million teu – corresponded to theseassessments. The figure was higher than in any year since2007, improving by 3.7% vis-à-vis 2012. Having startedoff relatively weakly in the first six months, the year thengot better and better in the second half. In the meantimeZepol, a US trade analyst, has established that imports inthe first three weeks of this year were 5.2% higher thanin the like-for-like period last year.

Varying developments in individual portsThe extent to which individual maritime ports sharedinto this import growth varied greatly, however, accord-ing to Zepol. Throughput in Los Angeles CA – the larg-est port – came to approximately 3.9 million teu, a lossof about 3.2% compared with the previous year. The eastcoast ports of Savannah GA and Norfolk VA, in con-trast, reported increases of 5.8% and 10.4% respectively.

Despite this positive news the rating agency Moody’sbelieves that the prospects for US deepsea ports in gen-eral are rather negative for 2014, citing low growth incontainer throughput developments compared to histor-ical levels. Moody’s has also ascertained an imbalancebetween supply and demand with shipping lines, whichit says has an impact on port activities too.

www.moodys.com

In briefNew structure. The Israeli container line ZIM has formulated a new agreementwith creditors to reduce its debts. The Israel Corporation, the owner of ZIM,is set to reduce its shareholding from 100% to 32%, with the shares beingtransferred to ZIM creditors. The transaction is said to be worth approximatelyUSD 3 billion (EUR 2.2 billion). These measures open up the path to the plannedsplitting up of the company. www.zim.com

New ships. The Middle Eastern carrier United Arab Shipping Co (UASC) hasconfirmed an option for six 14,000 teu vessels, to be built by Hyundai HeavyIndustries (HHI). Thus UASC’s orderbook at HHI now contains 16 vessels withcapacities of either 14,000 or 18,000 teu. Furthermore, HHI has started work onvessels for China Shipping, which will have a capacity of 19,000 teu and whichwill be deployed in the Asia–Europe trade. www.uasc.net

New partners. The Texan port of Corpus Christi and the city of Pharr TX (USA)have signed a memorandum of understanding to promote their mutual inter-modal activities. Port Corpus Christi has been targeted as a key port of entry forplant machinery and container cargo destined for southern Texas, as well as forshipments destined for northern Mexican industrial conglomerates.

www.portofcorpuschristi.com

New investigation. China’s competition authority has started an anti-trustreview of the proposed P3 Network. A final decision is unlikely before May,according to industry sources. The P3 launch date is subject to approval fromregulatory authorities in the European Union and the USA too.

www.cma-cgm.com; www.maerskline.com; www.mscgva.ch

11International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Shipping & Ports

regional port structure. The modern facilitywill have a straight-line quay measuring 1,200 m anda yard area covering 66 hectares. It will provide the market withan annual capacity to handle 2.5 million teu, which can also beaugmented as and when this becomes necessary on account of risingdemand. By positioning itself closely to these two populous Africancentres, Ictsi has once again underlined its strategy for the future offocusing on emerging economies. Antje Veregge

www.cma-cgm.com; www.ictsi.com

New terminals in Africa

Quantity drivingdevelopmentThe Manila-based Filipino terminal operator Ictsi is

continuing to bank on the expansion of its activities

in emerging economies. With new projects near

Kinshasa (DRC) and Lagos (Nigeria), the company

is positioning itself in close proximity to Africa’s

two largest metropolises.

From 1996 to 2003 the Democratic Republic of theCongo, the former Zaire, was racked by civil war. Thoughthere is still widespread unrest and strife in eastern Con-go today, the situation in the rest of the country has beendeemed relatively stable since free elections were heldin 2006. Reason enough for the Filipino hub operatorInternational Container Terminal Services Inc (Ictsi) tofeel confident to now actively tackle its first terminalproject in the African state.

Enrique K. Razon jr, Ictsi’s chairman and president,told the media that «we have been following the posi-tive economic developments in DRC closely.» Now thisobservation is to be succeeded by action. The firm’s IctsiCongo DR hub in Matadi on the River Congo is dueto commence operations in 2015. In phase one the fa-cility will be able to handle 120,000 teu annually, andthat phase will also see the establishment of two berthswith a total length of 350 m. With its state-of-the-artequipment the quays will match modern internationalinfrastructure standards. Capacities and berth lengthscan be doubled in phase two if necessary, with the deci-sion subject to demand developments. Ictsi’s total capitalexpenditure on phase one is expected to amount to ap-proximately USD 100 million (EUR 74 million).

Matadi is already the main entry point for contain-ers into Congo today, and the capital Kinshasa, furtherinland, is a key driver of demand. It is estimated that ithas approximately 9 million inhabitants, making it oneof the three largest conurbations in Africa, together withLagos (Nigeria) and Cairo (Egypt). Ictsi Congo DR isa joint venture, with Ictsi’s partner Simobile holding a40% stake.

Strategic locationsThe Filipino operator is also banking on cooperationin Nigeria. There Ictsi has sold 25% of its Lekki Inter-national Container Terminal Services LFTZ Enterpriseto CMA Terminals, a subsidiary of the French corpora-tion CMA CGM. The facility, which is located appro-ximately 60 km east of Nigeria’s capital Lagos and whichis expected to be fully operational in 2017, is a tranship-ment hub that will play an important role in relieving the

Ictsi will use the portof Matadi to serve theKinshasa metropolis.

Photo: Thinkstock

Kinshasa

Euro-Med ServicesTRANSPORT OF ANY TYPE OF VEHICLE, EARTH MOVING EQUIPMENT, FORESTRY PRODUCTS,

STANDARD AND SPECIAL CONTAINERS, PROJECT AND HEAVY LIFT CARGO

• Alexandria• Antwerp• Ashdod• Beirut• Bristol (Prby)• Civitavecchia• Cork• Derince

• Esbjerg• Flushing• Gemlik• Hamburg• Izmir• Lattakia• Limassol• Livorno

• Malta• Mersin• Palermo• Piraeus• Salerno• Savona• Setubal• Southampton

• Tripoli(Lebanon)

• Tripoli (Lybia)• Tunis andRades

• Valencia• Wallhamn

ANTWERPGrimaldi BelgiumTel: +32 3 5459430Fax: +32 3 5414275

HAMBURGGrimaldi GermanyTel: +49 40 789707 12Fax: +49 40 789707 71

LONDONGrimaldi Agency UKTel: +44 207 9305683Fax: +44 207 8391961

NAPLES GRIMALDI HEAD OFFICE euromedquotations@grimaldi.napoli.itTel: +39 081 496111 Fax: +39 081 5517401 www.grimaldi.napoli.it

Direct weekly service from/ to:

12 Aviation International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

The Indian Directorate General for CivilAviation (DGCA) has punished three pri-vate airlines for allowing pilots who havenot been trained to land in foggy weatherto land planes. The carriers concernedare GoAir, Jet Airways (in which theAbu Dhabi-based Emirati carrier EtihadAirways recently acquired a 24% stake)and Indigo Airlines. With 52 flights re-directed from Delhi airport by the endof January, the number of incidents wasas high as in any winter. This is why theauthorities, who had drawn particular at-tention to these regulations before winterstarted, took drastic measures this yearand had no hesitation in withdrawing sixslots from the companies in question.

A380 welcome, USA cautiousOperators of the Airbus A380, on the oth-er hand, breathed a sigh of relief recently.The world’s largest aircraft may now soonbe landing in India too. Until now thelargest aircraft that the authorities wouldallow foreign airlines to land on Indiansoil was the Boeing B747-8, which wasseen as an attempt to protect domesticairlines. However, re-negotiations regard-ing flag carrier Air India’s membershipof the Star Alliance – spearheaded byLufthansa and Singapore Airlines (bothof whom are A380 operators) – have nowresulted in the authorities rethinkingtheir position.

Indian airlines cannot commence anynew services to the USA until furthernotice, however. This is as a result of the

country being downgraded to category 2in Icao’s aviation security programme(Iasa), as announced by the AmericanFederal Aviation Administration (FAA)on 31 January. India had been rated at thehighest level since August 1997. In orderto regain this status it needs to do muchmore than just appoint 75 flight inspec-tors, as the government did on 20 Janu-ary, however, according to reports fromWashington.

In another decision the US depart-ment of transport has again held talkswith Air Serbia (and thus indirectly withAir Serbia’s co-owner Etihad, who holdsa 49% stake), during which it rejectedAir Serbia’s request for a code-share onthe US flights of Etihad. US regulationsrequire any airline wanting to fly to thecountry to be «owned by the state con-cerned, or its citizens», which the law en-forcers apparently did not believe couldbe guaranteed in this case.

Russo-German thawRussian freight airlines may, however, f lyfrom Frankfurt (Germany) to the USAin future. In return for granting fifthconcession rights on this route, Germanfreight airlines have now been allowed 21additional overflights across Russian ter-ritory. With this agreement last month,representatives of both countries endedseveral years of troubled dialogue on thisissue. Andreas Haug

www.dgca.nic.in; www.dot.govwww.faa.gov; www.mintrans.ru

India opening up, USA holding back, Russia and Germany in agreement

Plenty happening in the skiesIndia has granted the Airbus A380 permission to land in the country, but has reacted

with disbelief to its re-positioning in the USA’s security ranking. The USA is thwarting

Etihad’s investment plans, and Russia and Germany are moving closer to each other.

Only a model so far – in this livery. Etihad will take delivery of its first A380 at the end of this year.It will first deploy the world’s largest passenger aeroplane to Sydney and Melbourne (Australia).

Phot

o:I3

M/A

irbus

In briefSale and rental. The British carrier TitanAirways had sold its last Boeing B737-300Fto Atlantic Airlines in December, and hasnow leased the same type of aeroplane backfrom the buyer. Atlantic Airlines, which isheadquartered in Coventry (England), is theBritish branch of Sweden’s West Atlanticgroup. Titan Airways is based at LondonStansted airport and carries out overnightair mail flights for Royal Mail.

www.titan-airways.comwww.westatlantic.eu

Another ten years. The US freighter opera-tor Southern Air, which is headquartered inFlorence KY, has extended its partnershipwith DHL Express. It will continue to operateits four Boeing B777 freighters on a wet-lease basis for the global express serviceprovider for another ten years. DHL deploysthe aircraft in its worldwide network, flyingthem from Hong Kong to Los Angeles andLeipzig, or to Cincinnati and Bahrain.

www.dhl.com; www.southernair.com

Nonstop to New York. South AfricanAirways is set to resume its nonstop Johan-nesburg–New York JFK flights on 9 March –three weeks earlier than originally planned.The northbound flights now arrive earlyin the morning, as a refuelling stopover inDakar (Senegal) has been dropped.

www.flysaa.com

New LA link. Having launched a newservice to and from Toronto (Canada) withthe last change in the timetable, SaudiaAirlines is now set to fly a Boeing B777-200ER weekly from Riyadh to Los Angeles(via Jeddah) with the launch of the summerschedule. The 16-hour intercontinental leg ofthe journey will become one of the longestnonstop operations for the triple seven.

www.saudiacargo.com

No LA link. Malaysia Airlines is terminatingits Boeing B777 services to North America,as they had become economically unfeasi-ble. On 30 April Los Angeles will becomethe last destination to be served. The airlineassured its customers that there will be aminimal impact on the carrier’s airfreightactivities, as its key destinations in the USAwill continue to be served by its Oneworldalliance partners. www.maskargo.com

Quality. Cargolux has become the first air-line to receive a good distribution practicescertificate for healthcare and pharmaceuticalproducts. www.cargolux.com

13International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Aviation

The United Kingdom’s airports commis-sion has reviewed national airport capac-ity in the UK, and concluded in Decem-ber that there is a need for an additionalrunway in the southeast by 2030. Thereis also likely to be a good case for a sec-ond new runway by 2050. The body didnot shortlist the Thames Estuary options,because «at this stage they still includetoo many uncertainties and challenges.»Gatwick and Heathrow airports faredmuch better.

Gatwick, just south of London, hasproposed a new runway to the south ofits existing runway. The hub handled96,939 t of airfreight last year (–0.8%vis-à-vis 2012). Heathrow, in the westof the city, is the country’s largest air-freight centre by far and the fourth-larg-est in Europe. It handled throughput of1.42 million t in 2013 (–2.8%). It playedtwo trumps simultaneously, proposing a

new 3,500 m runway to the northwest, aswell as the extension if its existing north-ern runway to 6,000 m, thus enabling itto operate as two independent runways.140,000 households and businesses mostlikely to be affected by the plans are nowbeing surveyed. www.gov.uk

www.gatwickairport.comwww.heathrowairport.com

Turkish adding flightsTurkish Airlines has announced a seriesof frequency increases to and from itsIstanbul hub, which are all due to beimplemented shortly. The new destina-tion Astrakhan (southern Russia) will beserved four times a week from 4 Marchfrom Sabiha Gökçen airport, where thefreight operator Turkish Cargo has beenaccepting goods for one year now.

From the city’s major Atatürk airportTurkish Airlines will increase the numberof weekly flights to Budapest (Hungary)and London Gatwick from 14 to 21 each,from the start of the summer schedule,which will be at the end of March. Dublin(Ireland) will then also be served twelvetimes a week instead of ten, and the Scot-tish capital Edinburgh nine times insteadof seven.

In Ukraine the airline is improving itslinks to Donetsk and Simferopol, both ofwhich will now be served 14 times a week,up from ten and nine options a week re-spectively. The short-haul operation toVilnius (Lithuania), via Tallinn (Esto-nia), will be doubled to six connections aweek. The long-haul link to the Malaysiancapital Kuala Lumpur has been increasedfrom four to seven.

www.turkishcargo.com

Public consultation on the future of Heathrow to run until 16 March

Four weeks for a third runwayBy summer next year it is expected to be clear where the United Kingdom will improve

its aviation infrastructure. The hottest candidates are now busy jockeying for position.

On 3 February London Heathrow airport launched a six-week public consultation.

A lot of traffic at the London gateways, with airtraffic over the capital expected to increase.

Phot

o:He

athr

owai

rpor

t

Freight volumes handled at Europe’s air-ports in December rose by 3.5% in com-parison with the like-for-like month in theprevious year. (It was 0.5% higher than inDecember 2011 and 1.9% higher than inDecember 2010). Of the big four play-ers, only London Heathrow lost ground.Its local competitors Stansted (–15% to15,231 t) and Gatwick (–16.5% to 7,417 t)fared even worse, however.

Istanbul Atatürk airport registered thestrongest growth in the period under re-view, not for the first time in 2013. It thusconsolidated its position amongst the tenleading European freight hubs. The com-plete year’s results (+0.8%) will be ana-lysed in a future issue. In 2014 Atatürkwill probably start seriously chasing thehubs in Luxembourg and Cologne-Bonn,both of which are regularly ranked aheadof it. Only the capital city airport in An-kara recorded greater growth (+43%) inTurkey than Istanbul Atatürk, whose car-go volume of 1,603 t remains rather mod-

est, however. Ankara was also outrankedby Sabiha Gökçen (+3.9% to 3,154 t) andIzmir airport (+13.1% to 1,762 t).

Olivier Jankovec, the director generalof ACI Europe, which publishes the fig-ures, hopes that both Turkey and Russia

will continue to grow as dynamically asthey have recently. ACI Europe has pre-dicted that the airfreight industry canpotentially attain growth of about 1,5%in 2014 – if the conditions are right. ah

www.aci-europe.org

Conciliatory end to year at airfreight hubs stimulates mild optimism

Freight throughput at leading European airports in December 2013

Rank (December 2012) Airport Country Airfreight in t ±%1 (2) Frankfurt DE 167,686 +2.92 (1) Paris (CDG) FR 165,512 +1.23 (3) Amsterdam NL 134,800 +7.24 (4) London (LHR) GB 118,759 –1.15 (5) Leipzig-Halle DE 72,956 +3.36 (7) Luxembourg LU 63,085 +14.67 (6) Cologne-Bonn DE 61,311 +6.38 (8) Istanbul (IST) TR 57,459 +20.09 (9) Liège BE 47,676 –0.8

10 (10) Milan (MXP) IT 37,978 +9.0

Freight throughput at leading Swiss airports in December 2013

1 (1) Zurich CH 23,968 –4.32 (2) Geneva CH 4,286 +13.13 (3) Basel CH 3,536 +15.1 So

urce

:ACI

Euro

pe,A

DV

14 Forwarding & Logistics International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

The Austrian transport and logistics

company Gebrüder Weiss has hoisted

its orange flag in Turkey. Wolfgang

Niessner, the CEO of Gebrüder Weiss,

gave the ITJ an in-depth interview

covering a range of details about

the past and the future of his firm.

This is Wolfgang Niessner’s tenth yearas CEO of the international forwarderGebrüder Weiss. His assessment of lastyear’s overall performance is positive. TheGW chief said that in the first six monthsof 2013 it did not look as if the year wouldbe promising. But in the second half thetide turned, the economy picked up andthe objectives that the group had set itselffor the year were achieved.

«We’re reasonably satisfied. Of coursewe just have to accept that our industryis not blessed with the same high rates ofreturn that other sectors in this countrymight enjoy,» Niessner admitted in hisinterview with the ITJ. The experiencedmanager spoke bluntly of the «light years»that separate the margins in the industrialsector as a whole and the domestic logisticssector. Gebrüder Weiss’s corporate resultsin 2013 stood at a similar level to those in2012, when more than 6,000 employeesworldwide generated a turnover of morethan EUR 1.1 billion.

Today Gebrüder Weiss has an equityratio of around 60%. «This level of capi-

Gebrüder Weiss expanding its geographic presence

Orange sun rising in the east

Wolfgang Niessner, GW’s CEO.

Phot

o:G

ebrü

derW

eiss

talisation may appear to some in the in-dustry to be rather uncommon,» Niessnersaid with laconic understatement. Themanager ascribes such excellent resultsto a philosophy that has been unchangedfor many years. The motto is to remaingrounded and to expand with a sense ofproportion, whilst at the same time ensur-ing that the investment risk is contained.

It is this strategy that has transformedwhat was originally a messenger serviceinto a global logistics service provider.As long ago as 1437 the families Spehlerand Vis (Weiss) provided regular logisticsand travel services between Milan andthe region around Lake Constance. A cer-tain Johann Wolfgang von Goethe usedGebrüder Weiss’s services when he jour-neyed to Italy in 1788.

Happily, the company is not dependentto any great extent on the goodwill ofbanks. «We’re very fortunate to be inde-pendent of the banks. We do, however,value our positive partnership with ourfinancial institutions very much.»

It was the positive performance of thevarious business segments in the domes-tic market, in most of the neighbouringcountries as well as the firm’s many ac-tivities between Lake Constance and theBlack Sea that contributed to the previousyear’s good performance. The accession ofCroatia to the EU, on the other hand, wasa dampener. Customs clearance businessin that market vanished practically over-night. Consignments are no longer han-dled in terminals now but are delivereddirectly to recipients.

Moving into Georgia and TurkeyGebrüder Weiss also works on behalf ofDPD, a company which says that it isdoing very well. This segment of GW’sbusiness was stable in 2013. Air and seafreight also developed well.

Gebrüder Weiss’s orange colours arenot only seen all across Western andCentral Europe these days, from LakeConstance to the Black Sea, but recentlyalso flew further afield – in Georgia andTurkey. «Our eastward expansion is thelogical evolution of our strategy of fol-lowing our customers to the locationswhere they set up offices,» Niessner ex-plained. Last year Gebrüder Weiss estab-

A business unit of the Direct Mail Group.

YOUR PARTNER FOR PRINT MEDIA LOGISTICSDirect Mail Logistik AGReinacherstrasse 131 – P.O. Box – CH-4018 BaselT +41 61 337 83 50 – F +41 61 337 83 51info@dm-logistics.ch – www.dm-logistics.ch

15International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Forwarding & Logistics

lished a greenfield terminal in the Geor-gian capital Tbilisi, together with localpartner Tegeta Motors. The facilities arerun at Western standards «because that’swhat our partners expect.»

The other countries in the Caucasusare easily accessible from Georgia, andthere is evidence of growing demand forhigh-quality logistics services, especiallyas more international companies establisha presence in the region.

The same applies to Turkey, where thecompany recently opened a branch officewith a staff of 13 in Istanbul. By expandingin Turkey and Georgia «we’re building abridge between China and Europe,» Niess-ner said. By entering Georgia and TurkeyGW is doing nothing more than followingits international customers to these coun-tries. They need a proven logistics providerby their side. In Turkey, for example, thejob of developing and providing reason-able logistics solutions involves using one’sknow-how to link up the different modesof transport as effectively as possible. Thisis why the new site in Turkey has been de-signed as a multimodal hub – to link air,sea and road transport.

With the acquisition of the Vienna-based firm Far Freight, Gebrüder Weissnow has an in-house entity with CentralAsian expertise as well as knowledge ofthe Russian market. The company has20 employees in offices in NaberezhnyeChelny, near Kazan in the Russian repub-lic of Tatarstan, and Ashgabat, the capitalof Turkmenistan. Far Freight has manyyears of experience in handling land, airand sea transport and project business inRussia and Central Asia. According toNiessner the company fits very well intoGebrüder Weiss’s eastern expansion.

Proven partnershipsFor Gebrüder Weiss itself the entry intoRussia in the overland transport fieldis out of the question at the moment,though Niessner can indeed imagine astronger corporate presence in Russia infuture. The move would hinge on findinga suitable Russian partner, which offersthe same standards of logistics servicesas in industrialised countries. The in-dependent expansion of business activi-ties in the «mature markets» of WesternEurope, on the other hand, is definitely

not an option. «We’ve been working withproven partners there for decades – andthat’s the way it’s going to stay,» Niessnerclearly stated.

GW is not planning any acquisitionsthis year. «Millions of euros – a soliddouble-digit figure – is being invested thisyear, however,» in building and expand-ing GW terminals. In Austria the firm isbuilding a forwarding facility at its head-quarters in Lauterach (Vorarlberg). Expan-sion is also going on in Hall (Tyrol) andMaria Lanzendorf, near Vienna, wherea specially-designed handling facility forhigh-tech products is being erected ona newly-acquired 17,000 sqm site. Newconstruction is also going on in Brno(Czechia), Belgrade (Serbia) and Sofia(Bulgaria).

Gebrüder Weiss is investing in its ownfacilities because «assets are always worthhaving», and also because it can respondto needs just as flexibly with its own facili-ties as with leased ones. «It’s an illusion tobelieve that you’re more flexible rentingthan constructing your own premises,»Niessner closed. Josef Müller

www.gw-world.com

in ONE hand

Your full truckloads

The European Transport Organisation

16 Forwarding & Logistics International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

Groupe Dimotrans, a French forwardingand logistics company based near Lyon,recently took over the enterprise PhoenixEurope Express, a French transportationcorporation which is headquartered inGoussainville, near the country’s capitalParis.

The transaction encompasses all ofPhoenix Europe’s road haulage activities,the Lille branch office and the integra-tion of the overseas subsidiary Master Lo-gistique, with its two agencies in Roissyand Le Havre.

Dimotrans, a firm that has around650 employees on its payroll, generated aturnover of EUR 158 million in financial2013, which ended on 31 March 2013.

Salvatore Alaimo, the head of Dimo-trans, expects to post a turnover of EUR180 million in the firm’s current business

year. Phoenix Europe Express generatesannual sales of approximately EUR 23million with its team of 60 people.

rawww.dimotrans-group.com

www.phoenix-europe.fr

Dimotrans acquires Phoenix Europe ExpressIn briefID Logistics impresses in 2013. The Frenchservice provider with international activi-ties reported a turnover of EUR 735 millionin financial 2013, an impressive 31% in-crease over the preceding year. In Q4/2013the company’s turnover grew by 46%, toEUR 218 million. The firms recorded itsstrongest performances in Russia, Argentina,South Africa and Poland.

www.id-logistics.com

New in Innsbruck. The Eden Prairie-basedUS forwarding and logistics company C.H.Robinson Worldwide has opened an officein Innsbruck. The new Austrian centre willfocus primarily on European road transportactivities. www.chrobinson.com

Yusen expanding. The Japanese serviceprovider Yusen Logistics is expanding itspresence in the German inland port ofDuisburg. The company is planning to add26,000 sqm to its existing distribution facil-ity there, bringing the centre to a total of68,000 sqm. Besides a 10,000 sqm ware-house and a 10,000 sqm cross-docking hub,the logistics service provider is also planningto establish a 6,000 sqm hazardous goodswarehousing facility.

www.yusen-logistics.com

Spanish post office fined. Spain’sComisión Nacional de Mercados y Com-petencia, the country’s national competi-tion authority, has fined the state-ownedpost office Post Correos to the tune ofEUR 8.17 million. The body’s main accusa-tion concerns the postal service providerabusing its position as the market leaderand granting major customers excessiveprice reductions. www.correos.es

www.cnmc.es

Phoenix Europe Express –now under new ownership.

Phot

o:Ph

oeni

x

Partial privatisationfor Poste Italiane

Italy wants to partially privatise its state-owned post office and some other enter-prises that belong to the state. The na-tional government recently agreed to sellshares in Poste Italiane, the Italian postoffice, as well as in the air traffic controlentity Enav. The part-privatisation modelcan also be applied to other state-ownedcorporations, if appropriate. Italy wantsto raise up to EUR 5.8 billion from thetransactions and use the funds to reduceits debt. The sale of around 40% of thefirm should be completed by mid-year.

www.poste.it

Norbert Dentressanglebreaks through sales barrier

Norbert Dentressangle, a French trans-port and logistics provider, posted a re-cord in financial 2013, generating a turn-over of EUR 4.03 billion. This representsa 3.9% increase over the EUR 3.88 billionregistered in 2012. The strongest salesdriver was the transport division, whichcontributed EUR 2.014 billion, followedby the logistics unit (EUR 1.95 billion)and the forwarding department (EUR 145million). ND raised its Q4/2013 turnoverby 9.6% to EUR 1.073 billion (comparedto Q4/2012’s EUR 979 million).

www.norbert-dentressangle.com

Haus der SpediteureZollstraße 33D-78244 Gottmadingen-Bietingen

Tel. +49 77 34 93 65 90Fax +49 77 34 93 65 929

info@zollas.de

Areal ShellBodenseestraße 19D-78187 Geisingen-K-Hausen

Tel. +49 77 04 92 38 89 0Fax +49 77 04 92 38 89 10

geisingen@zollas.de

Zollas Verzollungen GmbHAuf Herdenen 24D-78052 VS-Villingen

Tel. +49 77 21 94 47 633Fax +49 77 21 94 47 635

villingen@zollas.de

Zollas Verzollungen GmbHPostfach 273CH-8240 Thayngen

Tel. [CH] +41 52 6 49 10 80Fax [CH] +41 52 6 49 35 11

info@zollas.de

Since the start of the year Hussein Hachem has been CEO of the globaltransport, CEP and logistics company Aramex, which is headquarteredin Amman (Jordan). He is very pleased with the corporation’s goodannual result for 2013. It boosted turnover by 8% in comparison withthe previous year, to AED 3.3 billion (EUR 671 million). Aramex’s netprofits rose by 14% to AED 278 million (EUR 56 million).

The French cool chain specialist and logistics operator Stef, in turn,improved its sales by 5.2% in 2013 vis-à-vis the previous year, fromEUR 2.5 to 2.6 billion. The corporation’s acquisition of KLS and Ebrexalso contributed to sales growth. ra

www.ups.comwww.stef.com; www.aramex.com

2013 annual results

Up not downFebruary is traditionally the month in which the vast

majority of the world’s transport and logistics firms

present their annual results for the just-completed

business year. The ITJ has had an initial – though

incomplete – look at some reports.

The US integrator and parcel service provider UPS,which is headquartered in Atlanta GA, has reportedgood figures for both the fourth quarter of 2013 as wellas for the entire financial year. Its full-year profits ofUSD 4.37 billion represent a five-fold increase over theUSD 807 million registered in 2012 – but this is still lessthan had been expected. In 2012 the bottom line washeavily affected by a pensions provision. The corpora-tion’s turnover rose by 2.4%, namely from USD 54.1 bil-lion in 2012 to USD 55.4 billion last year. In Q4/2013,turnover increased by 2.8%, to USD 14.98 billion (com-pared to USD 14.57 billion in Q4/2012), and earningsamounted to USD 1.17 billion. UPS had posted a lossof USD 1.75 billion in Q4/2012.

Aramex again substantially improved its sales and profits in 2013.

Phot

o:Ar

amex

In briefNippon Express takes Panasonic Logistics stake. TheJapanese forwarding and logistics company Nippon Expresshas acquired a majority stake of 66% in Panasonic Logistics,a subsidiary of the Panasonic Corporation. The Osaka-basedlogistics firm, which was founded in 2001, has been renamedthe Nittsu Panasonic Logistics Co in the meantime.

www.nipponexpress.com

New headquarters for Europa Worldwide. The companyEuropa Worldwide Logistics, which is based in Erith in Kentand is one of England’s leading privately-owned transport en-terprises, is making a massive investment in a new head officeand South England hub at Prologis Park in Littlebrook, nearDartford in Kent (England). The firm will lease a 26,500 sqmfacility from Prologis. Construction will start in summer 2014,with a completion target of early 2015.

www.europa-worldwide.com

TNT Express surprises Brazil. TNT Express, an internationalCEP and logistics service provider based in the Netherlands,has decided to refrain from selling its domestic operationsin Brazil, as the company had previously planned to do. Thecorporation has terminated discussions with potential bid-ders for TNT Mercurio, its domestic operator in Brazil. Themove is rather surprising in the light of the fact that, in thewake of the collapse of the takeover by UPS, the corporationhad announced strict cost-cutting measures a year ago, to beimplemented by the end of 2015. The measures had includedcutting 4,000 jobs worldwide and the supposed sale ofdomestic activities in Brazil. www.tnt.com

17International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Forwarding & Logistics

,,,9?:E!?:).N:!G"R''R3?9(E5&3R* /< 8.!N:! $-:3J:< 7:KRAG*E,:< LJHEKN< I822 /M79

+:K9 420B/ F//F1B

O#&Q +Q&L+T% 8$Q+>TQ $+ +MT 8#Q+ #7 7TCIPL+#;T

S6J.KR*@ .3= Q:KR.)RKR*@ GR3(: 2BD1S

18 Forwarding & Logistics / Automotive International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

the port of Derince into the hub for itstwo ro-ro lines to Ilyichivsk (Ukraine).United European Car Carriers (UECC)followed suit in September, introducinga new ro-ro link to Novorossiysk (Russia).

The government has said that it willclear coastal regions in the west used bythe army to create new export possibili-ties. Valuable time will be lost, however,before the new Galata port opens, forexample, or even the port of Derince isprivatised. The tender for the latter col-lapsed on 22 January, on account of thestate’s demands. Christian Doepgen

www.osd.org.tr

Automobile exports from Turkey

Ro-ro under pressure?Two thirds of Turkey’s car production is destined for export. The key ports in the

Marmara region are at the limits of their export capacities. Ever more ro-ro services

are being launched. An Ekol Logistics option via Trieste was amongst them early in 2014.

Turkish car exports are getting more difficult.

Phot

o:To

yota

Turk

ey

The Turkish automobile manufacturingsector is the country’s most importantexport industry. According to the na-tional Automotive Manufacturers’ As-sociation (OSD), vehicles worth aroundEUR 15.5 million are exported annually.In 2013 1.13 million cars, trucks, vansand lorries were made, more than in anytwelve-month period before.

Running factories in Turkey remainsa favoured strategic option for all of thelarge carmakers, a fact that was furtherunderlined by Toyota in July 2013. TheJapanese firm said that it was set to startproducing its Corolla car in its Sakaryaplant. A special new tax that the Turkishgovernment started levying on the acqui-

sition of new cars in 2014 is not expectedto slow down the massive investment inproduction facilities that Ford, Fiat, Hon-da, Renault and Hyundai are engaged in.It is expected to amount to approximatelyEUR 1.9 billion by 2016.

Inadequate infrastructureExporting cars from Turkey by sea re-mains the most popular option. Butports in the Marmara region, in particu-lar, have reached the limits of their ca-pacities. Besides sending vehicles to theEU, the country has also increased itsexports to new markets, such as Ukraineand Russia, recently. Turkey’s Cenk groupannounced in 2013 that it was set to make

www.blg.dethe shortest pathis a straight line

Visit us at

hall 5stand 414

19International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Forwarding & Logistics / Automotive

Cars made by the manufacturers Jaguarand Land Rover in the United Kingdomand destined for the German market aretransported to the northern German portof Cuxhaven by sea. The port operatorCuxport – based there and majority-owned by the Rhenus Group, with HH-LA holding a minority stake – unloadsthe units there from the ships carryingthem, in cooperation with ARS Altmann,a German automobile logistician with in-ternational activities. The cars are thenloaded onto enclosed railway wagons.ARS Altmann, which is headquartered inWolnzach, in the state of Bavaria, thentransports the vehicles from Cuxhavento destinations in the German states ofHessen and Bavaria. From there, the carsare later distributed to authorised dealers.

Two-way trafficOliver Fuhljahn, who is in charge of Cux-port’s automobile logistics activities, toldthe media that «this two-way traffic is analmost perfect solution, both from aneconomic and ecological point of view.We’re very happy to make full use ofcar-carrying trains operated by ARS Alt-mann, which arrive in Cuxhaven withnew German vehicles for export, andcan now make their return journeys toHessen and Bavaria loaded with importedBritish cars. The enclosed wagons addi-tionally ensure that the cars are secure.»

The vehicles arrive in Cuxhaven onboard DFDS Seaways ro-ro ferries, whichoffer nigh-on daily services to and fromImmingham, on the River Humber inLincolnshire (North England). Cuxportloads the vehicles onto railway wagons inits own railway sidings, which were mod-ernised and expanded two years ago. Thecar-carrying trains then make their way totheir destinations of Riedstadt in Hessenand Wolnzach in Bavaria. ARS Altmannhas intermediate storage facilities there,and the vehicles are then distributed totheir final destinations from there.

Michael Bronsert, ARS Altmann’shead of sales, added that «we carried outmany test loading operations at Cuxport,

which convinced us that the terminal isefficient, as well as of the technical feasi-bility of the loading processes. We weredelighted to have been able to optimisethe supply chains to the German marketfor Jaguar and Land Rover to a greater de-gree than was the case in the past, thanksalso to our collaboration with terminaloperator Cuxport.» ra

www.cuxport.de; www.ars-altmann.de

Automobile logistics and hinterland traffic

Luxury limousines travel by railIn January 2014 the port terminal operator Cuxport, based in the German hub in

Cuxhaven, started handling the inland distribution of imported British Jaguar

and Land Rover cars to the German market by rail.

Jaguars and Land Rovers are loaded off shipsand now also onto railcars in Cuxhaven.

Phot

o:Cu

xpor

t

aseamlessjourney

Travelling with WWL simplifies the factory to dealerjourney. From ocean to inland, we tailor ourservices to find the most efficient path for yourvehicles. So leave the details to us and know thatyou are in reliable hands.

Visit our web site www.2wglobal.com

Supply Chain Management | OceanTransportation | Terminal Services | Inland Distribution | Technical Services

Wallenius Wilhelmsen Lojistik Hizmetleri Ltd.StiMeclisi Mebusan cd Inebolu sok Ekemen Han 1/A-134427 Kabatas - Istanbul, Turkey

Phone: +90 212 251 55 07Fax: +90 212 251 48 77

20 Rail / Inland Shipping / Road Haulage International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

Daniela Evertz, the head of the petrol sta-tion unit at Rheingas, explained recentlythat «when a truck is driven by a liquefiedpetroleum gas (LPG) propulsion system,then its diesel engine is in action at thesame time. This is not the same as incars, where a petrol-driven unit has anadditional gas tank and the car is gener-ally equipped with a bi-fuel drive system.This means automobiles are propelled ei-ther by LPG or petrol at any given time.First the liquefied petroleum gas is trans-formed into a gaseous state of aggregation

by a vaporiser unit, with the assistanceof a motor cooling system. Then the gasis fed into the diesel engine’s air intakeby electronic fuel injectors. The mixturethen streams into the cylinders and isburnt together with the diesel fuel.»

This combustion process creates up to50% less soot particles. Mixing in LPGthus has two substantial advantages. Onthe one hand the alternative fuel emitssubstantially less particulate matter andnitrogen oxide than diesel does. On theother hand, a unit’s fuel costs are alsolowered by up to 20% in comparisonwith pure diesel-engine operations. Bothecological as well as economic parametersare thus in favour of the new technology.

Evertz added that «it is thus foresee-able that demand for new infrastructurefor refuelling stations for diesel /LPGoperations will increase. That’s why we’reinvesting in expansion now.» Rheingashas a lot of experience in the construc-tion of re-fuelling stations for cars, so itcan offer its customers excellent adviceon the building of both public as wellas company-owned in-house LPG re-fuel-ling centres. Evertz knows that this will«involve advantages in the field of fleetand running costs, both for a company’sre-equipped lorry fleet as well as for allof its other vehicles.» www.rheingas.de

Swiss-Italian cooperationSwitzerland has plans to create a contigu-ous 4 m rail corridor through the countryby 2020, from Basel through the Gotthardand Ceneri base tunnels to northern Italy.The countries’ transport ministers signedan agreement in the Swiss capital Bern on28 January, which will make sure that thenecessary infrastructural improvementson the Italian side of the border can befinanced. To this end Switzerland hasagreed to make EUR 120 million avail-able to adapt the profile on the Luinoline, which plays a very important rolein Switzerland’s policy of shifting trafficfrom the roads to the railways. Italy’s in-vestment in the undertaking will amountto approximately EUR 40 million, whichhas been earmarked for work on the lineconnecting terminals (operated by theSwiss company Hupac) located on thefringes of the Lombardian metropolisof Milan and the Swiss border town ofChiasso. At the moment it is still openwhether further infrastructural improve-ment works will be carried out at later,particularly on the Simplon line betweenDomodossola and Gallarate (both Italy).

A day after the accord was signed thedirectors of two supervisory authoritiesagreed to establish a simpler and morecost-effective rolling stock authorisationprocedure. A so-called cross-acceptancedeal was struck, obliging the two statesto mutually recognise each other’s offi-cial certificates and to allow units to op-erate on each others’ tracks. Switzerlandalready has such agreements with France,Germany, Austria, Spain, Belgium, Lux-embourg and the Netherlands. ah

www.ansf.itwww.bav.admin.ch

New drive systems to make lorries more economical

For clean saversWhilst the number of cars using gas engines has been growing for years, the truck seg-

ment is only slowly adopting the new trend. Rheingas, a leading provider of liquefied

petroleum gas (LPG) propulsion systems, has now announced its viable new technology.

One third gas is mixed in with diesel fuel inbi-fuel lorry engines.

Phot

o:IT

Jarc

hive

s

FELIX TRANSPORT AG I Talstrasse 47 I 4144 Arlesheim I Switzerland I T +41 (0)61 766 10 10 I felixtransport.ch

I Thermotransporte mit ADRI Pharmatransporte

The Duisport Group, the operator of theinland port in Duisburg (Germany), isexpanding the capacities of its Logport Iand III centres, located on the left bankof the River Rhine. Hand in hand withthat expansion, rail infrastructure is alsobeing augmented by four gantry cranes,taking the total from six to ten. In ad-dition, the handling and depot area isbeing enlarged by 13 ha. The company,which is owned by the German stateof North Rhine-Westphalia, the city ofDuisburg and Germany (one third each),says that this move will create the condi-tions it needs to expand capacity to 5 mil-lion teu, with effect from 2015.

The first phase of the expansion inLogport I will be completed by the endof February, when a new trimodal gantrycrane with a span of about 140 m entersoperations at the D3T facility. It will bethe second crane of this size at the D3Thub. In autumn 2014 a third railway crane

for the neighbouring trimodal containerhub DIT is due to follow.

This acquisition of new cranes withhigher performance ratings is closelylinked to the expansion of the centre’srailway infrastructure, as well as to anextra 10 ha of handling and warehous-ing area. Around 50,000 sqm, which hadbeen used for automobile handling sofar, will now be dedicated to box activi-ties. The requisite rail infrastructure hasalready been installed.

Over and above this, the Logport IIIterminal in the Duisburg Hohenbudbergarea is set to receive two new rail cranes.The first one will be ready in April, withthe second one starting operations thisautumn. The terminal will be expandedby 3 ha. Logport III’s seven transhipmentrailway tracks, two shunting tracks andtwo gantry cranes will then be able tohandle around 600,000 teu annually. av

www.duisport.de

New ships for ImperialThe German company Imperial GasBarging, a subsidiary of the ImperialShipping Group, has commissioned theImperial Gas 90 and the Imperial Gas 91,two identical sisterships. As Imperial GasBarging specialises in the transportationof all gaseous products, the units will notonly be used to haul classic gas productssuch as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG),but will also transport the complete rangeof gaseous products, including ammoniaand propylene oxide, for example.

The hulls of the company’s two newunits are 110 m long and 11.45 m wide.They can be deployed in canals and canthus also sail in the entire Rhine Rivervalley network, including the river’smany tributaries.

Each vessel has six individual tanks,each of which can hold a total of 463 cbmof gas. This means that the freighters havea greater capacity than standard-sized gastankers. av

www.imperial-shipping.com

Germany’s largest inland port is expanding

Adding box capacitiesThe inland cargo hub of Duisburg is one of Germany’s most important goods handling

centres. The Duisport Group, which runs the hub, is now expanding the Logport I and III

container terminals, which will bring its handling capacities to 5 million t a year.

The inland port of Duisburg is increasing its warehousing and handling capacities.

Phot

o:Du

ispor

t21International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Rail / Inland Shipping / Road Haulage

Boxes to IstanbulThe Belgian transport service providerEwals Intermodal (EIM) and the Turkishfirm Saras Lojistik have opened a newmultimodal corridor linking northwest-ern Europe to Turkey. EIM and Saraswill deploy 45 ft pallet-wide high-cubecontainers, and 30 ft bulk containers onthe route, in contrast to the trailers thatare usually used in this corridor. Thetransportation is routed between Co-logne (Germany) via Trieste (Italy) andIstanbul Haydarpasa (Turkey). As thepartners offer daily services, shippers canhave consignments weighing up to 28 ttransported to their final destinationswith one week transit times. av

www.ewalsintermodal.comwww.saras.com.tr

HLS CONTAINER BREMEN e.K.Fährgrund 21 | D-28755 BremenE-Mail info@hls-container.deTel. +49 (0)4216599014 | Fax +49 (0)4216599029www.hls-container.de

Containerverkauf ab| Basel | Frenkendorf | Weil am Rhein |

| Ottmarsheim | Kehl | Strasbourg |

Neue und gebrauchte ISO-Norm Container –20ft/40ft Standard, High Cube, Open Topsowie Spezialcontainer.

Transport frei Haus, auch mit Abladung.Ein-/Umbauten nach Wunsch.

22 International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

On 16 February 1945 Franz Rittmann,the editor-in-chief of the newspaperTransport, as the International TransportJournal ITJ was called then, wrote that«aeroplanes, in contrast with ships, therailways and lorries, are one of the war’swinners.» He believed that this was cleareven before the fighting ceased in Europeon 7 May 1945. His assessment was un-derlined by the fact that technologicaldevelopments in the Second World Warhad brought about the jet engine. The1939–1945 war also gave a massive impe-tus to airmail and airfreight activities.Towards the end of the war a trendtowards full-freighters was evendiscernible, whilst f lying boats rep-resented a potential alternative forlong-haul operations.

The world’s largest ever flying boat,which still holds the record for the biggestwingspan of any aircraft in the history ofaviation, was developed too late for war ac-tion, however. The industrialist HowardR. Hughes was asked by the US govern-ment to build a large transport plane inNovember 1942, «at a time when Ger-man submarine warfare reached its mostintense level,» as the above-mentionedarticle stated five years thereafter. But as-sembly of the Hercules HK-1, as it wasinitially called, only began in June 1946.

In late 1947 Hughes an-nounced that the unit was

ready for a test swim. The short 45 kmtransfer from the hangar to the coast costno less than USD 55,000. The eight en-gines developed their full 24,000 hp onthe third test run on 2 November in theport of Long Beach CA, bringing theplane to a speed of 160 km/h. «Suddenlysomething unexpected happened – theaeroplane took off from the water verysmoothly, and flew for about 1½ kilo-metres at a height of about 20 m.» Theflight, which was carried out within theground effect, remained the only flight ofthe so-called Spruce Goose, for plannedserial production of the flying behemothnever took place, in the light of the unit’srather poor cost /benefit ratio.

Other flying boats which made avia-tion and air cargo history did enter pro-

duction, however. This group includesthe Martin JRM Mars (a small series ofseven units built), whose developmentwas started in 1938 and whose maidenflight took place in 1942.

The Martin JRM Mars plane was ear-marked for the transportation of troopsas well as freight between the west coastof the USA and Hawaii and other Pacif-ic islands during the war. The CarolineMars, the last aircraft in the series to bedelivered (1948), set a new world recordon 8 September 1948, when it carried 30 tof cargo over a total distance of 600 km.That is more than short-haul freighters de-ployed today, such as the Boeing B727 or737, can transport. After their time withthe US Marine Corps the planes were re-fitted as fire-fighting units. In Canada inautumn 2013 the Hawaii Mars II becamethe last Martin JRM Mars unit to beretired. Andreas Haug

Looking back at the moment when the aircraft with the largest wingspan ever took off for the first – and only – time

«Suddenly something unexpected happened»The Hughes H-4 Hercules weighed 115 t, was designed to lift a 65 t payload, was 66.6 m long and had a wingspan of 97.5 m. Not bad

for a plane built in 1947, whose vital statistics could even compete with the Antonov AN-225, the largest full-freighter in the world,

as well as with the Airbus A380, the biggest serially-produced aircraft ever.

30 January 1948Mahatma Gandhi assassinatedHalf a year after India’s independence theadvocate of non-violent civil disobedience(ahimsa) against British colonialism is shotdead by a Hindu fundamentalist.

24 June 1948 – 12 May 1949The Berlin airliftThe Soviet Union closed over-land routes to the city, so Alliedaircraft supplied West Berlinwith 2 million t of goods by air.

We’ll be celebrating our 75th anniversaryin ITJ 27-30 / 2014, which will be publishedon 18 July 2014. Join in our historical remi-niscences from now on and until our jubileespecial appears this summer.

The ITJ’s 75th anniversary

No. 47 /1947On 21 Novemberwe reported onthe H-4’s maidenflight. It remainedits only takeoff.

1939 1940 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000 2010 20141940

75YEARS

ITJ

23International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Balkan States Special

In many Balkan countries, trade andlogistics services are on the rise. In July2013, Croatia became a member state ofthe European Union, the second Bal-kan state, after Slovenia joined in 2004.Trade between the Balkan states and theEuropean Union – which is the leadingpartner both for imports (61%) and ex-ports (65%) – has been increasing steadilysince 2010. Preferential trade agreementsbetween the EU and the Balkan coun-tries are designed to promote this devel-opment. These treaties will be in forceuntil 2015.

Many smaller projects are under wayto further transport and logistics servicesin this multi-faceted region. A WesternBalkans trade logistics project is a notablecase in point. It was initiated in 2012 bythe World Bank and the EU, and is to beimplemented by June 2014. The project,which covers Albania, Bosnia and Her-zegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, FYR Mac-edonia, Montenegro and Serbia, aims tospeed up customs handling procedures,standardise regulations for working timesand opening hours and promote onlinecommunications between countries.

The measures focus primarily on threemajor trade routes. One stretches fromSkopje to Sarajevo, one from Podgoricato Serbia’s northern border and one from

the port of Durres to Pristina. Anotherobjective is to provide the inland states inthe Balkans with access to the Mediterra-nean, to help improve the reliability andperformance of supply chains betweenthe coast and the interior, as well as toreduce the high level of bureaucracy. Cur-rently, physical inspections of goods bycustoms can take up to two weeks.

Meanwhile, the project has spread itswings across borders. During a workshopin Belgrade in November 2013, the pri-vate businesses network Pro Danube In-ternational was given the opportunityto illustrate the administrative obstacleswhich continue to impede inland ship-ping routes through the many countriesbordering the Danube.

The International Finance Corpora-tion (IFC), a member of the World BankGroup, is now considering the option oflaunching its own initiative to improvethe situation.

Unresolved conflictsIn some areas, on the other hand, prepa-rations for the unconditional economicintegration of the region, which is essen-tial for trade to prosper, have run intodifficulties. In December 2013 blockadeswere set up at the border between Serbiaand Kosovo, with the specific purpose of

interrupting the free flow of goods acrossthe frontier, not passenger traffic.

An enduring dispute between Bulgariaand Turkey with regard to transit trafficalso reached a new level recently. AfterSofia issued only a fraction of the usualnumber of permits for Turkish forwardersfor 2014, Turkey introduced restrictionsfor the Bulgarian transport and logisticsindustry on 31 January 2014, whereuponthe Bulgarian government closed the bor-der for all Turkish trucks on 1 February.

This dispute is being played out beforethe background of Bulgaria’s long-stand-ing wish to increase its share of transittrade to and from Western Europe. So far,the parties have not been able to reach anagreement, which has led to a long tail-back of trucks waiting at frontier cross-ings, such as the one between Kapikuleand Kapitan Andreevo. These events area repetition of delays caused by a previousdisagreement that took place in 2013 (seeITJ 35-36/2013, page 50).

Thus the competition for market sharein the Balkans continues, by fair meansor foul. The prospect of gaining accessto the EU’s markets is the key to furthereconomic progress.

Christian Doepgen

Mixed fortunes for economic development in the Balkans

Slowly improving?Trade between the EU and some Balkan states has been increasing since 2010. Some

efforts, such as a trade logistics project for the Western Balkans, can be considered

harbingers of recovery. There are setbacks, too, as a Bulgarian-Turkish dispute shows.

Poor goods flows at some borders.

Phot

o:Za

man

Wherever You Need us!GRUPPONUOVA TRANSPORTS Nuova Transports

S.p.AConcorezzo Nuova Transports

International S.r.l.Torino

Nuova TransportsAdriatica S.r.l.

Civitanova Marche

International Transport & Logistics

www.gruppont.com

ITE Group PlcAnastasia Emelianovatransport@ite-events.com+44 207 596 5011

25International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Balkan States Special

Business was more than satisfactory lastyear for the Piraeus Container Terminal(PCT), a Greek subsidiary of the heavy-weight Cosco China. Its aggregate volumeof container traffic came to 2.52 mil-lion teu in its two facilities, terminals IIand III. Thus Cosco, which has operatedthe two centres since 2008, was able toincrease its throughput by 20% in com-parison with the previous year. Containertraffic in the terminal managed by thePiraeus Port Authority (OLP), in contrast,only came to approximately 644,000teu, which corresponded to satisfactory

growth of close to 3% in comparison with2012. Cosco is currently investing in theexpansion of its terminal III. It has plansto increase its annual handling capacitythere from 4.2 to 6.2 million teu.

Analysts believe that Piraeus will beable to rise to the top slot amongst thelargest container ports in the Mediter-ranean region by 2016. The local mediahas reported that the Greek port alreadyadvanced from fourth to third place inthe previous period under review.

Over and above this the car terminal inPiraeus also recorded admirable augmen-tation in the last period analysed, thanksparticularly to increasing imports fromJapan and South Korea. In the oppositedirection there are also ever more vehiclesbeing shipped from the European Unionacross the Eastern Mediterranean and theBlack Sea to Japan.

In this context Piraeus not only ben-efits from its advantageous geographicposition near the Suez Canal, but alsofrom a new connection to the interna-tional railway network. av

www.olp.gr; www.pct.com.gr

Carpatair bankruptThe privately-owned Romanian airlineCarpatair, 49% of which is owned bySwiss and Swedish investors, filed for in-solvency on 23 January. The corporation,which is based in Timisoara, actively soldits freight capacities itself. These consistedof a Boeing B737-300 (30 cbm) and threeFokker 100s (one leased from MoldavianAirlines, 18 cbm each). Carpatair wantsto temporarily continue its operationsunder official supervision. ah

www.carpatair.com; www.mdv.md

Greek container terminal reports good results

Piraeus posts positivesThe number of containers handled in the Greek port of Piraeus once again grew last year.

The Chinese corporation Cosco, in particular, believes that there is plenty of potential yet

to exploited in the hub, and is expanding its capacities to this end.

PCT will have a 6 million teu capacity from 2016.

Phot

o:PC

T

In briefNo presents on its birthday. The year2013, which saw Air Moldova celebrate its20th anniversary, gave the Southeast Euro-pean carrier no joy in the freight division. Itsvolumes declined by 19% vis-à-vis 2012 to1,188 t, and its cargo performance slipped bya massive 31% to 1.085 million ftk.

www.airmoldova.md

Small freighter. The Moldavan full-freighteroperator Aerotrans Cargo has leased an ATR-42-300(F) from Lithuania’s DOT. www.dot.lt

No buyers. 100% state-owned MontenegroAirlines has been asked to find private inves-tors this year. None of the earlier attemptsundertaken by the government in Podgoricato team up with interested parties from Israel,or with Etihad Airways and Turkish Airlines,resulted in any success.

www.montenegroairlines.com

Skopje

Durres

Corridor X

Corridor VIII– Logistics– Ships Agency– Port Operating– Warehousing– Forwarding– Customs Clearances– Transport Permits

Lagja No. 1, Rruga TaulantiaKullat Binjake, Kati 3, Seksioni 2

Durres - Albaniawww.gala-al.com

Apostol Guslarot Nr. 61000 Skopje

Republic of Macedoniawww.ems-gbl.com

Langjja 13, Terminali LindorHyrja nr. 5

Durres - Albaniawww.ems-apo.com

AlbanianPortOperator Shpk.

We open the gate to the Balkan

Even though Albania is placed 90th outof 189 countries in a World Bank rankingassessing «the ease of doing business», theBalkan State holds the red lantern whenit comes to issuing construction authori­sations and providing electricity. Nowthis is set to change. Last October theEuropean Commission gave the countrythe green light to commence negotia­tions concerning accession to the Euro­pean Union. Albania is thus «ready forchange», as prime minister Edi Ramastated recently.

Besides the assistance of the Inter­national Monetary Fund, earmarked forstructural reform and the reshaping ofthe country’s fiscal framework, people inthe capital Tirana are primarily banking

on investment from Italy and Greece. Byissuing concessions Albania is planningto attract investors from the EU. Theseare expected to build the requisite infra­structure and logistics projects, with thehelp of multilateral institutions. In thiscontext the construction of a new deepseaport in the central city of Lezhe has beenmooted, for example.

Improve customs processesA large part of Albania’s maritime trans­port is currently handled in the port ofDurres, its most important hub. The cen­tre is frequently criticised for its unstruc­tured privatisation and expansion plans,however, and above all for the completelyinadequate customs clearance facilities

Albania banking on foreign investment in its infrastructure

A long way to the EUIt seems that Albanian membership of the EU will only be possible in the distant future,

in contrast to other Balkan States, such as Croatia or, in future, Montenegro and Serbia.

Tirana hopes that foreign infrastructure investment may bring progress today.

A lot of Albania’s infrastructure is in a bad state.Some EU countries may invest there now.

Phot

o:Th

inks

tock

there. This is why Rama declared thatthe customs formalities procedure has tobecome more professional in Durres, toenable the country’s economic develop­ment to advance at a satisfactory pace.The Durres and Tirana customs stationscontribute 70% of Albania’s total cus­toms income. Antje Veregge

26 Balkan States Special International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

��� ! �� �� � � ! � ��� � � �� � �� � �� � � ��� � � �� � �� � � ! �� � � ! ���� �

� � � ����� � � � � �

� �

� � � � � �

� � � � � � � � � � �

� �

� � � � � � � �� � � �

� � � ������ �

� � � �

� �

� � � �

��� �� �� � � � � � � � � � � � � �

The company Proxima BG, which wasfounded in 2003 and which is headquar-tered in the Bulgarian capital Sofia, isexpanding the range of services it pro-vides. The enterprise has offered all of theusual transport options so far, includingrail services, road haulage (full-load andgroupage links), as well as air cargo andsea freight solutions.

2014 marks new beginningNow Proxima BG has said that 2014 willmark a new phase in the corporate historyof the Bulgarian entity. In a step-by-stepprocess the firm will introduce new op-tions for its clients concerning logisticsfor explosives, fireworks and militaryequipment (including weapons and mu-

nition, amongst others). So far, the focusof Proxima BG’s business activities in thisfield was on procuring transit authorisa-tion for hazardous goods transportationthrough Bulgaria and the rest of South-eastern Europe, and on organising secu-rity escorts for the same. In this context,all modes of transport were used.

New servicesProxima BG now offers two new services,with effect from 20 February. It has in-stalled a 24-hour telephone hotline forhazardous goods transportation in ac-cordance with the ADR guidelines forroad haulage. The second innovation cov-ers special new software for the documen-tation of hazardous goods consignments.

At the start of 2013 Proxima BG enteredinto a strategic partnership with theGallbrunn-based Austrian logistics pro-vider Alessandro Billitz Nfg, a hazardousgoods and bulk cargo specialist foundedmore than 60 years ago. ra

www.proxima-bg.comwww.billitz.com

Bulgarian service provider Proxima BG has added know-how

Hazardous goods expertiseThe Bulgarian transport and logistics enterprise Proxima BG introduced new

standardised processes for its logistics services in the hazardous goods and

military logistics fields at the beginning of the year.

The logistics firm Proxima BG specialises inhazardous goods options, amongst other things.

Phot

o:Ro

bert

Alte

rmat

t

27International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Balkan States Special

New box train to link Turkey and Pakistan

Betweenthe worldsTurkey has long considered itself a bridge between East

and West. The commencement of regular container train

operations between Istanbul and Pakistan’s Islamabad is

expected to create more infrastructural integration.

Negotiations between the EU and Turkey concerningthe country’s accession to the union are dragging on.Though there is some hope in Ankara that the recentstate visit by François Hollande, who became the firstFrench president to journey to the country for 22 years,will renew the dynamism of the process, there are simul-taneously no illusions there that Turkey’s path to joiningthe European Union might be a difficult one.

In the meantime the country is looking closely atthe East as well, where stronger economic cooperationwith nations there seems in reach. Turkey’s prime min-ister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Pakistani colleagueNawaz Sharif have plans to sign an agreement concern-ing preferential trade arrangements in the first quarter ofthe year. Erdogan has stated that trade between the twocountries currently is not commensurate with the «closeties» they have traditionally enjoyed, which is why theywant to «significantly intensify» cooperation.

Expansion of Turkey’s natural hinterland?One important element of these plans is establishingregular operations on an Islamabad–Teheran–Istanbulcontainer train, under the auspices of the EconomicCooperation Organization (Eco), of which Turkey andIran are members. They believe that this scheme will im-prove trade links between the two countries and also re-sult in greater economic integration in the entire region.

A test train ran on a transasian railway line linkingAlmaty (Kazakhstan) up with Istanbul (Turkey) in 2002.Now the development of an international passenger andfreight corridor in the Eco region is one of the alliance’skey priorities. Eco is an international body that works

Istanbul’s significance as a bridge between East and West is set to grow.

Phot

o:Th

inks

tock

to improve collaboration between its members in the fields of trade,investment and tourism. Its member states are Afghanistan, Azerbaijan,Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmeni-stan and Uzbekistan.

Our readers will have noticed that seven of the ten members statesare landlocked countries, a fact which Turkey hopes will lead to thefurther expansion of its natural hinterland. Furthermore, the idea ofopening the Marmaray tunnel, which was inaugurated in October 2013,to railfreight operations in the medium term, too, has also been mootedrecently. Antje Veregge

www.ecosecretariat.org

New DAL sailings to TurkeyThe shipping line Deutsche Afrika-Linien (DAL) addedsailings from Europe to the Turkish ports of Izmir, Mar-port, Yilport and Mersin to its network in January. Thenew options form part of DAL’s South African EuropeContainer Service network (Saecs) and also offer calls atLondon Gateway, Rotterdam, Antwerp, Bremerhaven,Hamburg and Algeciras. av

www.dal.biz

29International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Turkey Special

We care, We handle,We move... WorldwideOUR SERVICES:• BENELUX• DENMARK• EASTERN EUROPE• FINLAND• GERMANY• GREAT BRITAIN• GREECE• IRELAND• NORWAY• BALTIC COUNTRIES• SPAIN• SWEDEN• SWITZERLAND• TURKEY• AIR FREIGHT SERVICE• SEA FREIGHT SERVICE

www.itxcargo.com

ITX Cargo S.r.l.Viale Espinasse, 1631-20156 MILANO, ITALYTel: +39 02 300.92.1Fax: +39 02 33.49.91.45E-mail: info@itxcargo.comP.IVA: IT04776230965

ITX Cargo Veneto S.r.lVia dell’Esperanto, 13/A1-37135 VERONA, ITALYTel: +39 045 862.29.55Fax: +39 045 862.29.59E-mail: info@itxcargoveneto.comP.IVA: IT13219370155

ITX Cargo Overseas S.r.l.Viale Espinasse, 1631-20156 MILANO, ITALYTel: +39 02 87.25.18.1Fax: +39 02 87.25.18.99E-mail: info@overseas-itxcargo.comP.IVA: IT07500290965

Improving access to the region

New gantry cranesthe icing on the cakeFour new post-panamax cranes have recently been

delivered to the Yilport Gemlik container terminal,

which is set to commence operations soon.

The new Yilport Gemlik container terminal, on the south coast of theMarmara Sea, has been constructed with the aim of providing improvedoverall access to the region and is scheduled to commence operations in

The new cranes arriving in Gemlik.

Phot

o:Yi

lpor

t

April. Following completion of the initial constructionphase, customers’ ships should be able to be rapidly load-ed and unloaded at this modern terminal, which boastsa draught of 16 m and an initial handling capacity of600,000 teu per year. The new cranes will play their partin efficient operations.

Following a 50-day journey from Japan to Turkey ona freighter specialising in the transportation of handlingequipment, the gantry cranes recently arrived at theirdestination in Gemlik. They can handle 22 rows of boxesand are equipped with the latest technology. They werebuilt by Mitsui Engineering & Shipbuilding (MES) inJapan, in accordance with the precise requirements laiddown by the Yilport Holding, the parent company ofYilport Gemlik container terminal. The global portoperator, who also holds 50% of Malta Freeport, hasinvested «several million euros» in this project, accord-ing to Turkish sources. The exact amount has not beendisclosed, however.

The conditions are rightThe Yilport Gemlik facility has the advantage of offeringsufficient space to attract the necessary service compa-nies for cargo inspection, warehousing, customs clear-ance, and other similar services.

The timing of its operational start-up is also ideal,according to a statement from the port operator. Thelarge number of manufacturers and suppliers, as wellas global automotive dealers in the region, justifies amultipurpose port which is capable of rapidly handlingships and freight (including large quantities of marbleand mining industry products). According to a port rep-resentative the firm «expects to carry out an average of35 movements per hour in all container handling activi-ties in Yilport Gemlik.»

Bringing Istanbul closerCustomers should not forget the upcoming improvementof the port’s connections to Istanbul. Transit times toand from Istanbul will be significantly reduced once theIzmit Bay bridge, the world’s fourth-longest suspensionbridge, is opened at the end of 2015. With a main spanof 1,550 m and a height of more than 60 m it will crossthe Gulf of Izmit southeast of Istanbul.

Jutta Itenwww.yilport.com

30 Turkey Special International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

ConneCting Worlds.Be it in China, Kazakhstan or Turkey:With our dense network of 100 locations in over 30 countries,we get your goods to their destination, even via routes off thebeaten track.Profit from our local know-how, our pioneering spirit, and ourforesight.

www.mumnet.com

pixelio.de

31International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Turkey Special

The Frankfurt based German intermod-al service operator Kombiverkehr suc-cessfully initiated its first Asian run inOctober last year (see ITJ 43-44/2013,page 33). Now the corporation, whichmanages one of the largest networks forintermodal transportation in Europe,has established another rail-ferry com-bination between Germany, Greece andTurkey.

On 4 February the company startedtransporting trailers, containers and swapbodies on a direct train between theMunich Riem intermodal terminal andthe northern Italian Adriatic Sea port ofTrieste. The option runs thrice a week ineach direction. Consignments destinedfor Greece are on-forwarded to Patras ona mixed passenger and cargo ferry. Ship-ments headed for the western part ofTurkey are shipped to Tekirdag on cargoferries, as are those going to the Asianpart, namely to the port of Pendik onthe eastern outskirts of Istanbul. Kombi-verkehr’s sales manager Peter Dannewitzsaid that this was the reason why «thereare virtually no restrictions on hazardousgoods on these links.»

The train that was launched in Oc-tober, shuttling between Frankfurt andLudwigshafen and Trieste, has alreadyfulfilled the company’s expectations,

Dannewitz added. «The new train fromMunich also gives access to a fast ser-vice to southeastern Europe for thoseforwarders for whom Frankfurt and Lud-wigshafen weren’t ideal points.» The ad-vantage of Munich, he continued, is thatloads can easily be transferred betweenincoming and outgoing trains.

The Bavarian state capital and its met-ropolitan area also have their own largevolume of consignments, of course. «TheMunich Riem centre is well-connectednationally, with direct trains to Leipzig,Schkopau, Cologne, Duisburg and Ham-burg. Currently, it has enough capacityto handle shipments quickly.» Over andabove this the gateway terminal DuisburgRuhrort Hafen also offers links to Rotter-dam and Antwerp, whilst the HamburgBillwerder facility has good connectionsto and from Scandinavia and the Baltic.

Kombiverkehr sees great potential forgrowth on the routes to and from Greeceand Turkey, Dannewitz adding that «ourdecision to discontinue overland opera-tions to Turkey via the Balkan states, andto go straight across the Mediterranean,instead, has proved right.» The volumeof shipments on the service introducedin October is already higher than on theland-only route (discontinued in Novem-ber). This is down to the speed and reli-

ability of the new bimodal route, amongother things, the manager concluded.

Morten Joergensen, managing direc-tor of DSV Road’s Turkish activities, hasconfirmed that such thoughts also playeda role in his firm’s launch of intermodalservices between Turkey and the UK.«There’s increasing interest in combinedservices on these routes. Rail links be-tween Turkey and the UK are becomingmore efficient and reliable, transit timesshorter, and the links are an alternativeto both road and short sea operations.»

There are two options in the new ser-vice, a joint offering between the DSVGroup’s Air & Sea and Road units. Thereis a thrice-weekly direct rail link fromthe Halkali train terminal in Istanbul toZeebrugge or Rotterdam, or short-sea ser-vices from Istanbul to Trieste (northernItaly) and thence by rail to Zeebrugge orRotterdam, depending on the final UKdestination. The containers are then ei-ther shipped directly to customers in theUK, or to DSV’s hub in Purfleet. ah

www.dsv.com; www.kombiverkehr.com

Intermodal services from the UK and southern Germany

Demand for rail linksHaving launched its first Asian connection three months ago, the German intermodal

operator Kombiverkehr has now upped its frequencies there. The global logistics service

provider DSV, in turn, has gone one step further and now connects Turkey to the UK.

Kombiverkehr’s consignments only take fourdays to reach Istanbul from Munich Riem.

Phot

o:Ko

mbi

verk

ehr

Transit via TURKEY to IRAQinfo@geneltransport.com.trinfo@geneltransport.com.tr

Mr Haller, is the mandate to plan theBasel Nord terminal a Greek gift?I would not quite put it that way. But we’reunder a lot of pressure to create a goodworking environment for the future ofSwitzerland’s rather complex terminal en-vironment, there’s no doubt about that.Responsibility lies not only with SBBCargo, but also with our partner Port ofSwitzerland, the operator of the Swiss in-land ports on the Rhine, with whom wehave formed a planning consortium.

Swiss terminal operators want to be inon the project. How do they apply forsuch a role?The question of partnerships is very im-portant. We said clearly from the outsetthat we’ll welcome partners, with know-how more important to us than capital.We’re already talking to many interestedparties. It’s important to define the rolesof all the stakeholders in a transparentway. The Basel Nord hub needs to bemanageable and it must operate withoutdiscriminating against anyone.

What expertise are you looking for?A wide range. There are individual issues,such as empty container management orintegrating overland traffic. Ultimately itis about the entire supply chain. We’redeveloping a trimodal terminal, after all.

«It’s important to define the roles of allthe stakeholders in a transparent way.»

What role does volume forecasts play?Various figures have circulated...For me the consensus about the forecastvolumes was one of the important agree-ments that came out of the mediationprocess. 1–2% growth over the averageeconomic growth rate gives us a realisticframework for capacity planning. It’s aknown fact that the Limmattal Gatewayterminal is now going to be re-evaluatedon account of the results of the needs as-sessment that was carried out.

Some people have complained thatthere is no business plan for the termi-nal on the table yet.The business plan will depend on thechoice of investors, and they haven’t beendetermined yet. It will also depend on thequality of services in the terminal, as wellas on coordination with shippers. This issensitive information that will be com-municated by the operator at the end ofthe negotiations.

What are the next negotiations thatBasel Nord is set to conduct?As previously announced, we’re formingfive working groups, one for each modeof transport, as well as one each on thesubjects markets and empty containermanagement. All the stakeholders whoparticipated in the mediation process willbe involved. The associations are current-ly selecting their representatives. I expectthere to be five contact persons in eachfield. This is where our preliminary workis now paying off.

When will the working groups get intoaction?We want to start work in February andwant two to three meetings to have beenheld by each group by the end of April.

What is the further schedule?We first have to finalise the partnershipconcept, which also guarantees freedomfrom discrimination. Then we will definethe physical design of the terminal. We’reaiming to initiate the planning approvalprocedure in the fourth quarter of 2014.After detailed planning is complete we’llbegin construction activities in 2015. Wewant to commence operations on the firstrailtracks in December 2016.

These are ambitious milestones.The plan is ambitious but achievable. Thetenor of the mediation process was – don’thesitate for too long! We’re sticking tothis and are developing more services inparallel, for example direct connectionsfrom Basel to various destinations.

«The tenor of the mediation processwas – don’t hesitate for too long!»

Some critics are unhappy with SBBCargo as the patron of the project.SBB Cargo acquired the land for thisproject when no one was talking aboutBasel Nord yet. We collaborated on thepre-project phase. The project did notemerge all of its own, as some observersseem to believe.

What do you mean?It is overly narrow to look only at the ter-minal environment in Switzerland. Inter-national competition is not between ter-minals, but rather between supply chains.For Basel Nord to be successful we haveto adopt an intercontinental perspective.This is also true for hinterland traffic.

The ITJ will publish more interviews with stake-holders in the Basel Nord hub in future issues.

Large terminals keeping Switzerland on its toes

Basel Nord becoming a reality

Martin Haller, SBB Cargo’s head of intermodaltransport, is in charge of developing Basel Nord.

Phot

os:C

hrist

ian

Doep

gen

32 Focus on Switzerland International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

After one study is before the next study. With the conclusion of the government’s mediation process, the decision in favour of the

trimodal Basel Nord terminal has now been taken. SBB Cargo is in charge of planning the details, including practical aspects and the

involvement of third parties. For the ITJ, Christian Doepgen spoke to Martin Haller, who is SBB Cargo’s man in charge of the project.

goods it handled amounted to 3.25 million t, an improvement of morethan 10%. The number of trucks and trailers increased by almost 13%to 203,973 units. Amongst other measures, Ystad has benefited fromexpanded services offered by Polferries recently, with an additional shipsailing to and from Swinoujscie (Poland) since February 2013. Steadygrowth in traffic to and from Poland has enabled Ystad to make goodprogress for many years now. Its conventional bulk throughput, whichstill represents a small segment so far, contributed to the augmentationof overall volumes and to an increasing number of ship calls. cd

www.portofgothenburg.com; www.ystad.se

Swedish volumes volatile in 2013

Shadows and lightSweden is investing substantially in the development

of its ports. The volume of goods handled there in

2013 only partially corresponded to the hubs’ high

expectations, however.

The many Swedish government projects for the expan-sion of the country’s ports have been allocated invest-ment funds amounting to EUR 58 billion, according tosome estimates. Almost all of the nation’s exports arecarried by sea. Gothenburg is the leader amongst Swe-den’s ports in terms of overall throughput, and comes18th in the list of European centres. In 2013 it lost 5%of its container throughput, however (see ITJ Daily of30 January 2014).

The port of Ystad, in contrast, advanced to tenth placeamongst Swedish ports in 2013. The total volume of

Swedish ports hardly improved their container volumes in 2013.

Phot

o:Po

rtof

Got

henb

urg

DST Combitrans expandingDST Combitrans, a Swiss furniture forwarder and logis-tics service provider that is owned by the IndermühleGroup as well as the forwarding company Spitznagel,moved to a new cross-docking and storage hall inRekingen (northern Switzerland) at the end of 2013. Theproperty is owned by the company LGZ Hochrhein, afirm in which the Indermühle Group also holds a stake.

The two-storey building provides a total of 10,000 sqmof handling and storage space, as well as offices and rec-reation rooms. DST has leased a 4,700 sqm upper floorand also has 23 bays for trucks and delivery vehicles inthe facility. An adjoining 8,000 sqm yard provides park-ing areas for containers and swap bodies. DST stores newfurniture, mattresses, fittings and accessories in the newlogistics and warehousing facility.

www.dst-combitrans.ch

Talke scoops up Hammer LogistikThe German Talke Group acquired the Luxembourgiancompany Hammer Logistik on 1 January 2014. Themove further expanded the chemicals logistics expert’sEuropean dry bulk network and boosted its capaci-ties by 50 silo transport units to a total of about 1,200silo vehicles and containers. The vehicle fleet, overallfacilities and administrative activities in Luxembourgwill remain in that country and will be integrated intothe Talke Group as a stand-alone business. Hammer Lo-gistik was previously a subsidiary of the Aachen-basedGerman enterprise Europaverkehre Hammer & Co,whose operations have not been affected by this latestacquisition. www.talke.com

33International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 Central Europe / Nordic Countries and Baltic States

www.navis-ag.comHamburg · Bremen · Hannover · Freiberg

Rotterdam · Antwerpen · Barcelona

F

IATA

Schiffahrts- und Speditions-Aktiengesellschaft

34 Miscellaneous International Transport Journal 07-08 2014

AirBridgeCargo (ABC), Russia’s largestscheduled freighter operator and a partof the Volga-Dnepr Group, has delivered40 t of broadcasting equipment to Sochi.The equipment is needed for the open-ing ceremony of the XXII Winter Olym-pic Games, which will take place in thesouthern Russian city of Sochi on 7 Feb-ruary. The express transportation job en-compassed 54 t of equipment. It took offfrom Leipzig /Halle airport (Germany) ina Boeing B747-400 in mid-January.

«This was just one of our many recenttransports to Sochi,» Andreij Andrejev,ABC Germany’s head of corporate de-velopment, said. The pieces of telecom-munications equipment had arrived inGermany from the USA, Austria, Spain

and the UK, and were consolidated inLeipzig. The airline itself carried someof the equipment on one of its IL-76TD-90VD freighters from Vatry (France).The shipment included 40 t of displaystations and power units. Volga-Dneprconducted the flight on behalf of theFrench logistics company Efis Air, whichis part of the ECS Group. Alain Bous-sard, Efis Air’s general director, said thathis company was particularly pleased thatVolga-Dnepr’s professionalism had en-sured that the cargo was carried on a sin-gle flight, ensuring economical delivery.

Volga-Dnepr Airlines has operated 18Olympic flights to Sochi. In 2009 and2010 the airline operated flights carry-ing tunnel-boring equipment to the city

for its transport infrastructure. In 2011telecommunications equipment was de-livered for the broadcast of the skiingcompetition, considered a test-run for theOlympics proper. Volga-Dnepr also car-ried transformers and mobile gas-turbinepower plants to Sochi, to provide reserveelectrical energy during the games. ah

www.airbridgecargo.com

Volga-Dnepr Group carries equipment to Sochi

Citius, altius, fortiusThe XXII Winter Olympic Games are in full swing in Russia. One of the country’s top air-

freight firms was in the thick of the action before the Games even started, ensuring that

the athletes’ performances can be transmitted to television screens around the world.

ABC’s high-performance logistics – loadingequipment for the Olympic Games.

Phot

o:AB

C

MastheadA publication ofswissprofessionalmedia AG

Grosspeterstrasse 23, PO Box, CH – 4002 BaselTel: +41 58 958 95 00Fax: +41 58 958 95 90Administration e-mail: info@transportjournal.comEditorial office e-mail: transport@transportjournal.comE-mail person: firstname.lastname@transportjournal.com

Web site: www.transportjournal.com

Managing director:Oliver Kramer

Editor-in-chief /Publishing director:(cd) christian.doepgen@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 95 10

Editors:(ra) robert.altermatt@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 95 03(ah) andreas.haug@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 95 22(av) antje.veregge@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 96 58(it) jutta.iten@transportjournal.com +41 79 776 51 30

Plus our worldwide network of contributors:Johannes Angerer (Feldkirch)Eckhard-Herbert Arndt (Hamburg)Rüdiger Arndt (Ferrol)Dr André Ballin (Moscow)Sebastian Becker (Warsaw)Claudia Benetti (Effretikon)Eckhard Boecker (Kisdorf)Lutz Ehrhardt (Hamburg)Joseph Richard Fonseca (Mumbai)Harald Jung (Milan)Beat Keiser (Lugnorre)Ralf Klingsieck (Paris)Dr. Robert Kluge (Leipzig)Dr Christine Kulke-Fiedler (Berlin)Iris Martin (Hamburg)Manik Mehta (New York)

Josef Müller (Vienna)Barbara Odrich (Yokohama)Katja Ridderbusch (Atlanta)Dirk Ruppik (Surat Thani)Holger Schlote (Istanbul)Angelo Scorza (Genoa)Wilf Seifert (Zurich)Heiner Siegmund (Hamburg)Frank Stier (Sofia)

Translators:andree.schwarz@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 95 23gyan.sharan@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 95 21

Layout:olivier.kilchherr@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 95 11david.jentzen@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 95 17nicole.huebner@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 96 04

Subscriptions /Distribution:carolyn.piele@s-p-m.ch +41 58 958 96 48

Sales:Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Nordiccountries, UK, Ireland, Japan, South Korea, South Africa:siegfried.angeli@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 95 04Mobile: +41 78 688 87 90

United Arab Emirates, Turkey, Iran, United Kingdom(freight forwarding and aviation),Switzerland,Austria, Bavaria (postcodes 8 and 9), Job Market /RealEstate Market:roland.hofacker@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 95 07Mobile +41 79 305 48 40

Central and Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Greece, Cyprus:elina.marauska@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 95 27Mobile: +41 78 688 87 92

France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Balkan States, Malta,North Africa, Israel:mirko.vasiljevic@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 96 88Mobile: +41 79 466 35 95

Swisstrans, Swiss Shipping Guide, Propeller ClubDirectory:werner.kestenholz@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 95 16Mobile +41 79 674 29 52

Representative for Latin America:ernst.littig@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 95 14Mobile: +41 79 225 18 78

Advertising service:patricia.hunziker@s-p-m.ch +41 58 958 95 12vreni.haab@s-p-m.ch +41 58 958 96 29

Marketing:caroline.johnson@transportjournal.com +41 58 958 96 54

Accounts:brigitta.meyer@s-p-m.ch +41 58 958 96 18fax: +41 61 564 37 00

Printing and dispatch:Printec Offset, DE 34123 Kassel

Bank details:Credit Suisse, Basel, Swift CRES CH ZZ 80AIBAN: CH23 0483 5030 8286 3100 0 CHFIBAN: CH75 0483 5030 8286 3200 4 EUR

Place of jurisdiction and applicable law: Basel, SwitzerlandThe reproduction of articles or pictures, either as a whole orin part, is only allowed with the express permission of thepublisher. No responsibility is accepted for unsolicited material.

75th year ISSN 1420-5688Published fortnightly / Subscription: CHF 220 + postage

Swissprofessionalmedia AG is an associated memberof Fiata and Tiaca.

35International Transport Journal 07-08 2014 A Time for Reflection / Advertisers’ Index

A storm in a teacup«A person’s life is coloured by their power of imagination.»Honoré de Balzac (1799–1850), French writer

Have you ever paused to think about thefact that the weather is one of the toptopics of conversation all over the world?That’s too banal for you? Aha. But do youreally think I would waste your time withthis question if there weren’t more to itthan the first glance reveals?

The weather pertains to our very exist-ence. What wouldn’t we give for just onesunny day to interrupt weeks of rain. Orthink of Agamemnon. He even sacrificedhis daughter for favourable winds tocarry him to Troy. Despite the ensuing fairwinds, the story did not end at all happilyfor him, by the way.

Here’s an idea. Try and consider talk-ing about the weather as more than merechit chat, or people warming up for thereal thing. The first definition in the dic-tionary calls the weather «the state of thetroposphere and the concomitant changesit undergoes in one particular place,»and then goes on to elaborate that «theweather is characterised by elementssuch as air pressure, wind, wind speeds,temperature, humidity, visibility, types ofclouds, cloud cover and other meteoro-logical phenomenon.»

What I’m saying is this: the weather is actu-ally nothing but physics. Now that’s some-thing to be going on with. Just think of theimpression you’ll make if you have a graspof that field. I’m sure you’ve thoroughly in-vestigated weather patterns. At least youdid when your kids were small, and got onyour nerves with their inevitable «why?»But I digress.

No self-respecting king ventured outbefore first consulting the oracle in ancientGreece. Though we analyse the weatherreport before setting out today, the timeshave not changed all that much, believe youme. You trust the meteorologist when hesays you can go for a picnic at the lake. Butyou’ll only know what the result of your trustis once it’s too late. No meteorologist and nofortune teller predicted the tsunami in 2004.

The assessments of the current climatechange belongs to the realm of conjecture.The weather report is an indication of thingsto come, despite the fact that we can analyseand process thousands of pieces of weatherinformation through our computers, and thefact that we know that the world’s ice andwater masses and the sun are amongst thegreat factors forming the eternal weather.

Talking about ice masses – just thinkabout Roald Amundsen (1872–1928),from Norway, and his English competitorRobert Falcon Scott (1868–1912), racingacross the Antarctic, aiming to becomethe first person to reach the South Pole.A fascinating story – with which you’llcertainly shine, as you will with the green-house effect, the UN’s climate conferenc-es, global efforts to protect the environ-ment. More than 2,000 delegates from168 countries agreed to the first bindingtargets to reduce CO2 in Kyoto (Japan)in 1997. Since then climate diplomacy’soverarching aims have been to tightentargets and get countries such as theUSA, China and India on board – withoutmuch success.

So now what’s banal about theweather? You must have realised by now,at the very latest, that there is nothing re-ally banal about the weather at all. Talk-ing about it can take you from mythologythrough science to current events. TheIrish writer, lyricist, and playwright OscarWilde (1854–1900) knew that. «When-ever people talk to me about the weather,I always feel quite certain that they meansomething else.» Torsten Kollande

Advertisers’ Index

ABB Technikerschule . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8

Barth+Co Spedition GmbH & Co KG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .27

BLG Logistics Group AG & Co KG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18

CFND . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26

Direct Mail Logistik AG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14

Emirates Sky Cargo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36

EMS Chartering GmbH & Co. KG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25

Exim India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10

Felix Transport AG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20

Genel Transport Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31

GeorgeBaker (Shipping) Ltd. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Grimaldi Cia di Navigazione . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

HLS Container Bremen e.K. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21

I.F.A. Int. Forwarding Association Cooperatie U.A. . . . . . . .6

ITE Group Plc . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24

ITX Cargo Srl . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29

Kifa AG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3

Kita Logistics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2

LKW WALTER Internat. Transportorganisation AG . . . . . . . 15

M & M Militzer & Münch International Holding AG . . . . . .30

NAVIS Schiffahrts- u. Speditions AG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33

Nuova Transports S.p.A. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23

Turkish Airlines Inc. Türk Hava Yollari A.O. . . . . . . . . . . . . .28

Breakbulk Magazine & Events Breakbulk Events

and Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4

Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics Germany GmbH . . . . . . . .19

Zollas Verzollungen GmbH . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .16

Issue 09-10/2014 of the ITJ, with Breakbulk/Heavylift, Asia /Middle East and Benelux Specials,will be published on 28 February 2014. (The deadline for printing data is on 21 February 2014.)