On March 5-6, 2025, a key event in the field of transport logistics was held in Duisburg, Germany, at the Clayton Hotel Dusseldorf.
The forum was attended by 110 delegates from 18 countries.
The forum discussed the current state and trends of intermodal logistics, ports as centers of European logistics and gateways for transportation from Asia, rail freight, as well as the future of the “New Silk Road”.
🥇 The silver sponsor was MALBI-trans s.r.o. and Transvector Ltd.
🥇 The sponsor of the coffee break was Belgorod-Dnistrovskyi Merchant Sea Port.
🥇 The exhibitor was NFident (Nafith International Group).
Official information support was provided by:
- Association of International Forwarding and Logistics Service Providers (UTİKAD )
- Union of Road Carriers and Forwarders of Kazakhstan (SAPEK)
- International Union for Road-Rail Combined Transport (UIRR)
- Azerbaijan International Road Carriers Association (ABADA)
- Freight Forwarders Association of Azerbaijan (FFAA)
- Association of Freight Forwarders of Georgia (AFG)
- Turkmen Logistics Association (TLA)”
- Ukrainian Logistics Alliance (ULA)
- Interlegal (law firm, Ukraine)
- PLASKE Academy
- APK-Inform
Roman Dedkov, Founder and CEO of the organizing company RDL group, addressed the participants with a welcoming speech.
Then we moved on to Session 1: European Intermodal Logistics – Current Status and Future Trends, moderated by Liliana Krutonog, CEO of MALBI- trans s.r.o. She also opened the forum by presenting the topic “Development of New Routes – High Tariffs and Customer Doubts”.
Then Ralf-Charley Schultze, Director General of UIRR, discussed the effectiveness of intermodal solutions.
Alberto Grisone, Director for strategic projects and Network Developments at Hupac Intermodal S.A., raised a very interesting topic – “Development of the Trans-European Network: Studying Routes and Building Junctions for Rail and Freight Transportation between Europe and Asia”.
Artem Khachaturian, Commercial Director of UZ Cargo Poland, continued by covering the topic of geopolitics and problems of transport logistics – costs or investments.
Session 1 was closed by Stanislav Kovaljov, Head of cargo/logistics insurance division at Marine Insurance Services. He gave several examples of insurance cases.
After a short coffee break, Session 2: The intersection of rail, road and sea transport in the European supply chain began. It was moderated by Ralf-Charley Schultze, Director General of UIRR.
This session was opened by Alona Toprak 阿丽奥娜, Managing Director / CSO of DB Cargo Eurasia. She looked at the prospects of rail transport in the context of geopolitical challenges.
Dmitrij Hasenkampf, General Manager Sales & Business Development of RTSB GmbH- Rail Transportation Service Broker, continued, talking about the current development and trends in the trans-Eurasian logistics market.
Next, Hanna Mshar, Commercial Director of FERRY GROUP LLC, spoke. She presented the topic “Sea transport as an element of intermodal logistics on the Black Sea”.
Session 2 was closed by Pavel Lagov, Product Manager Central Asia at Hellmann Worldwide Logistics. He spoke about the integration of rail and road solutions with a focus on the Middle Corridor.
After lunch, we moved on to Session 3: Ports as hubs for European logistics and gateways for transportation from Asia. It was moderated by Igor Zhigora, VP Silk Road Vertical, DP World.
The first speaker was FATİH YILMAZKARASU, General Manager of Railport Terminali, who discussed the intermodal trade bridge connecting East and West – RAİLPORT.
Jordi Torrent, Strategy Director of Port de Barcelona, raised the topic of “European intermodal logistics: current status and future trends”, and presented the port’s experience in developing a rail network of 18 rail terminals (10 in the port and 8 in the port hinterland).
Session 3 was continued by Igor Zhigora, VP Silk Road Vertical, DP World. He spoke about ports as hubs for European logistics and gateways for transportation from Asia.
Dan Jarnea, Head of Marketing Department at Constanta Port Administration, spoke about the Port of Constanta and its role in the Black Sea.
Then Maurice Delattre, Regional Director of the Port of Amsterdam, spoke on “The role of ports in developing green corridors across Europe.”
Session 3 was concluded by Werner Peeters, Business Development Manager at NFident GmbH (Nafith International Group). He covered the topic of “Bridging the investment gap to meet terminal digitalization needs.”
Session 4: Shaping the Future of the New Silk Road – Vision and Strategies was moderated by Pavel Lagov, Product Manager Central Asia at Hellmann Worldwide Logistics Germany.
The first speaker was Thomas Kowitzki, Vice President, Global Head of Chinarail / Multimodal, DHL Global Forwarding GmbH. He discussed the European intermodal network and its connection to Asia. He also spoke about exploring multimodal options, challenges and opportunities on the Middle Corridor.
Next, Michaela Kralovicova (孟可岚), CEO of Infinity Forwarding, s. r. o., spoke about new trade routes on the Europe-Asia corridor.
The presentation was continued by Irakli Danelia (Prof. PhD in Economics), Central Asia & Caucasus Region Business Development Manager at A.P. Moller – Maersk. He spoke about the role of the Middle Corridor in connecting Europe with the emerging market of Central Asia.
Alexandra Ogneva, Board Projects, Project Head EECCA at Rhenus Logistics, spoke about the International Trans-Caspian Route: current situation, opportunities and challenges.
The forum was closed by Dr. Martin Neese, Chief Commercial Officer / Member of the Executive Board of VTG Rail Europe GmbH. He raised the topic of “Prospects and solutions of an intermodal rail intermediary on the Silk Road corridors today and tomorrow”.
The forum participants spent the evening at an evening cocktail reception, socializing, making new acquaintances and discussing projects.
The second day of the forum was devoted to a technical visit to the port of Duisburg. There, the participants were able to get acquainted and see how the DGT and DIT terminals are arranged and operate.
We hope that our forum was useful for all participants, brought new acquaintances, partnerships and ideas for further sustainable development!
We look forward to our next meetings!
RDL group
www.rdl.group
info@rdl.group
+380 931 77 60 55
+370 691 98 6 98