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Issue 5 2019 - FBJNA


///EUROPEAN PORTS Terminal Container Athus (TCA). (Photo by Karen E. Thuermer)


Terminal Container Athus (TCA) in Athus, Belgium, offers road and rail logistics options. (Photo by Karen E. Thuermer)


where we thought we would be at this time,” says Van Springel. The reason is largely


because Europe is facing a shortage of trucks. “With the mentality changing to seeking green alternatives, more companies are turning to rail.” The big news at TCA is a


Europe’s inland ports expand opportunities


By Karen E. Thuermer


Inland ports are critical to transport of containers, particularly given EU mandates requiring fewer trucks on the roads. Duisburg, in Germanys


Ruhr district, is home to the world’s largest inland port. As China extends its reach within Europe via its Belt and Road initiative, Duisburg has become an important European hub for Chinese trains. Around 30 of the 90 trains the terminal receives every week are from China, notably Chongqing and Wuhan. The containers are then loaded to trucks and ships for distribution to Italy, Switzerland, France, and beyond. Goods can also be


stockpiled in Duisburg’s nearly


23-million-foot


warehouse complex. Terminal Container Athus


(TCA) in Athus, Belgium just on the doorstep of France and the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is located around 155 miles from the


North Sea ports. TCA handles truck and rail traffic and covers a hinterland of some 186 miles, comprising Belgian Lorraine, French Lorraine and


Alsace, Grand Duchy


of Luxembourg, and the German regions of Sarre and


Rhénanie-Palatinat. “We are a transport


company the operates from seaport to end client,” reports Koen Van Springel, TCA director. “We handle a combination of rail and road. Twelve roundtrips are made weekly this here via rail from Antwerp and Zeebrugge.”


TCA has its own locomotive to carry out the “last mile” between the station and the terminal. Last


year TCA handled


78,000 TEUS, an increase of 20% over 2017. “We have budgeted for a 7.75% increase this year, and so far, [in early April] we


have exceeded


Last year Terminal Container Athus (TCA) handled 78,000 TEUS, an increase of 20% over 2017. (Photo by Karen E. Thuermer)


new rail link that is being constructed TCA and France. Construction began on the 2,854-foot rail link on April 5 and will tie TCA intermodal terminal to the Franco- Belgian border at Mont-Saint- Martin. Prior to this new link, trains have had to connect to France via the Grand Ducky of Luxembourg, which involves different rules and complex routings. “The new connection will


give more opportunity for TCA and the Port of Antwerp to connect directly to Marseille,” reports Koen Van Springel, TCA director. This will not only create a North-South link, but an opportunity for TCA to be a dry port hub. “The rail link will also make


it possible for us to go as far as Lyon, Dijon, and Strasbourg, France, and bring cargo up,” he adds. Van Springel describes


TCS as being a pre-port for seaports. “We can make the final transshipment.” Not only are labor costs


cheaper in Athus, Van Springel adds that empty containers can be better staged in the southern Belgium dry port. “We help decrease empty container movements,” he says. “Shipping lines are keeping empties here longer to find exports. Meanwhile, we can do repairs and reposition containers. Even if we keep the containers


longer, reloading


them here is more cost efficient.” TCA can handle six full trains


at the terminal simultaneously. “Given the fact we can add 25,000 square meters [82,020 square feet] to the terminal gives us the possibility of doubling capacity,” Van Springel adds. With over 52,000 square feet


of warehouse space, TCA also performs customer services such as stuffing and stripping of containers. For example, he says TCA has stored 32 tons of steel coil under climatized conditions. Located close to TCA is also


the 210-acre Ardenne Logistics business park, located at the intersection of the E411 and E25 motorways. According to Jean- Francois Hainaux, IDELUX business development officer, the park has room to expand, including a connection to rail. “We can offer high quality


rail transport,” he says. “Among the first companies to see an advantage are big volume distributors.” Already large distribution


centers are located near or next to the terminal. “Here they optimize returns and add an extra box on the chassis,” he says. “Rail offers efficiency to


clients who need their


shipments to be there at the correct time. Given roadway congestion, trucks cannot do that.” Overall, IDELUX owns


over 8.6 million square feet of space in the region. “Although 90-95% of them are full,” Hainaux admits, “there is still available plots at good prices. An advantage here is a company can do its production in Belgium and have its headquarters in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg.”


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