Belgian rail operator Lineas and German chemical company Evonik have relaunched a weekly rail service connecting Evonik’s production sites in the Port of Antwerp with Lineas’ main terminal. The new service provides convenient connections to the lo-ro and ro-ro networks, offering logistical flexibility.
The largest Ro-Ro terminal for handling new cars has opened on the Yangtze River in China. The operator of the facility is Haitong Taicang, a joint venture between Shanghai Port International Group (SIPG), Jiangsu Port Logistics Group and Chinese auto giant SAIC Motor.
Lineas and Hupac Intermodal have announced a partnership on the Zeebrugge-Milan route from 1 January 2025. Lineas will focus on rail operations, providing traction services, while Hupac will manage intermodal transport, leveraging its deep industry knowledge and operational capabilities. The partnership aims to improve service quality and develop the corridor between Belgium and Italy, providing customers with high reliability and enhanced connectivity via both Germany and France.
From January 2025, Hapag-Lloyd will launch a new East Med Express (EME) service, which will provide direct connections between London Gateway (UK), Rotterdam (Netherlands), Bremerhaven (Germany) and Antwerp (Belgium) with Egypt. The German carrier said the new route will be integrated with the Gemini Shuttle network, providing convenient connections to other regions of the Eastern Mediterranean and Northern Europe.
Stadler’s first locomotive order for the Lithuanian market includes an option for 17 additional units, spare parts and a 3-year maintenance period.
OOCL has announced the launch of a new route, China Laem Chabang Service (CHL2), which will commence operations from 10 January 2025. The new service will provide a more efficient connection between Eastern and Southern China and Thailand, offering competitive transit times and service reliability. This addition to the existing CHL services aims to meet the growing trade needs between these regions.
A strategic session was held in Astana with the participation of the management of JSC NC KTZ, Global DTC Pte. Ltd. (Singapore) and Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. (China), where the Single Digital Window (SDI) project was presented. This tool is aimed at the complete digitalization of customer service in the field of freight transportation, combining the commercial functions of KTZ subsidiaries into a single digital ecosystem.
The construction of the state-of-the-art Antwerp Coordination Centre (ACC), which will be the key point for managing port operations, has officially started in the Zandvliet-Berendrecht lock area. The facility is scheduled to open by the end of 2026. The eight-storey, 8,000 m², 46-metre-high building will replace the outdated centre from the 1970s. It will house teams of pilots, lock operators and other specialists, ensuring the coordination of the 274,000 shipping operations registered at the port in 2023.
The cargo turnover of the Mangystau freight transportation department for 11 months of 2024 increased by 1.3% compared to the same period last year, reaching 6.9 billion ton-kilometers. One of the key achievements was the development of new export routes: for the first time, shipment of ammonium nitrate began through the ports of Aktau and Kuryk along the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route (TITR). This route passes through the Azerbaijani port of Govsan and the Georgian port of Batumi, with plans to ship 50 thousand tons of the product to consumers around the world.
Cargo handling volumes at Latvia’s three largest ports decreased by 7.2% in January-November 2024 compared to the same period last year, amounting to 32.79 million tonnes. This is evidenced by data from the Latvian Ministry of Transport. In the overall transshipment structure, bulk cargo amounted to 15.63 million tonnes (-17.7%), general cargo – 12.59 million tonnes (+5.4%), and liquid cargo – 4.56 million tonnes (+5.3%).
