A delegation of Azerbaijan Railways (ADY) headed by Chairman Rovshan Rustamov visited Iran to assess the state of the railway infrastructure in Julfa. One of the key issues was the construction of a railway bridge across the Araz River, which will connect Nakhchivan with the mainland of Azerbaijan via Iran. In addition, ADY representatives got acquainted with the work of the wheel pair replacement workshop in Julfa.
German company Elbe Flugzeugwerke (EFW), which specializes in the conversion of Airbus passenger aircraft into freighters, celebrated an important milestone: the completion of the 100th freighter conversion in its history. The jubilee aircraft, an Airbus A330P2F, was delivered to a customer in Asia, just like the first aircraft of this model in 2017. Over the seven years of work, the joint project of EFW, Airbus and ST Engineering has added 49 Airbus A330P2F, 47 A321P2F and 4 A320P2F to the global freighter fleet.
DHL eCommerce and CTT Expresso have announced a strategic partnership to develop the eCommerce and parcel delivery market in Spain and Portugal, the fourth largest market in Europe. The companies will establish a joint venture, with CTT Expresso becoming the operator and distributor of DHL eCommerce in Portugal. In Spain, DHL will focus on B2B services, while CTT Express will handle the B2C segment. This collaboration will provide a highly efficient parcel handling and delivery network throughout Iberia.
Ocean Network Express (ONE) has announced an upgrade to its BBX (Baltic Bridge Express) service, which will now cover more ports and provide customers with even more reliable logistics solutions. The new route includes: Rotterdam ➔ Klaipeda ➔ Riga ➔ Tallinn ➔ Kotka ➔ Rotterdam.
The volume of cargo transportation along the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR) in January-November 2024 increased by 63%, reaching 4.1 million tons. Container transportation increased by 2.6 times and amounted to 50.5 thousand TEU. This became possible due to the increase in the route’s capacity to 6 million tons per year, including up to 100 thousand TEU containers.
Hupac is launching new routes and improving existing connections to increase the efficiency and sustainability of intermodal transport. One of the key innovations will be a new shuttle train between Ghent in Belgium and Piadena, southeast of Milan. Three services per week will be offered initially, with the possibility of increasing the frequency.
As fossil fuel power generation in Europe declines and demand for sulphur in the chemical industry grows, Aglobis, a subsidiary of Mitsui & Co., Ltd., and logistics operator Rhenus are launching a major project to create an efficient supply chain. Sulphur production, previously a by-product of power plants, has become an import segment, with liquid sulphur playing a key role. To meet this demand, Aglobis plans to build a sulphur processing plant with a capacity of 400,000 tonnes per year, scheduled to start operation in 2027.
The Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR) continues to demonstrate impressive growth. Over the 11 months of 2024, cargo traffic increased by 63%, reaching 4.1 million tons, while container traffic increased 2.6 times to 50.5 thousand TEU. The total throughput capacity of the route is now 6 million tons per year, including 100 thousand TEU of containers.
Strengthening International Transport Corridors
South Korea’s national carrier Korean Air has completed its acquisition of rival privately held Asiana Airlines, which will now be a subsidiary of Korean Air. The US$1.05 billion deal includes a 63.88% stake in Asiana. Full integration of the two companies, including the unification of their route networks and loyalty programs, will take about two years.
