News

08.07.2019

UTLC ERA: New prospects for transit in Kaliningrad region open through implementation of Joint Initiatives between Federal Customs Service and business

Kaliningrad, July 3, 2019 – The Joint stock company “United Transport and Logistics Company – Eurasian Rail Alliance” (UTLC ERA) believes that there is considerable growth potential for cargo transit via ports and terminals in the Kaliningrad region. This is in line with the decree issued by the President of the Russian Federation on May 7, 2018 “Concerning national objectives and strategic development tasks of the Russian Federation for the period until 2024.” UTLC ERA estimates that the volume of cargo transit through the Dzerzhinskaya-Novaya and Chernyakhovsk dry terminals on the border with Poland and two ports in Baltiysk and Kaliningrad can be doubled even under current conditions, and can reach one million TEU per annum in the future. The Company aims to take up the highest possible share in this volume through further development of multimodal transportation services.

The cargo volume serviced by UTLC ERA in transit through the Kaliningrad region amounted to 9 970 TEU, including 6 300 TEU delivered from Europe to China and 3 670 TEU from China to Europe in the previous year. Over the first six months of this year, overall transit through the region already amounted to 6 096 TEU and the Company expects its further growth.

“We have opened a new corridor in the Kaliningrad region where there are two ports which we can use to bypass railway bottlenecks at the boundary between 1520 mm and EU gauges and deliver containers by short sea to major European ports: Hamburg, Rostock, and those in Nordic countries. As soon as we announced this product – even as an idea – we immediately received several proposals from short sea operators. Dispatch via the ports in the Kaliningrad region is considered to be a good addition to the traditional land routes, in the event that the European railway infrastructure is for whatever reason incapable of accommodating increasing cargo volume,” – says UTLC ERA President Alexey Grom.

The company is also closely involved in the discussion and development of programs together with the Russian Union of Industrialists and Entrepreneurs (RSPP) and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation (CCI of Russia) with UTLC ERA being a member of both associations, and with the Eurasian Economic Commission (EEC). Inter alia, a joint work group with the Federal Customs Service (FTS) and the Company’s specialists under the auspices of the Logistics Subcommittee of the Committee for International Engagement has been created on the RSPP platform. The work group promotes priority projects, information systems for customs bodies and FTS regulatory base development initiatives.

“The continued development of information systems for customs bodies in regard to the fulfilment of provisions of the EEC Board’s decision ‘Concerning the approval of the Procedure for the submission of preliminary information on goods intended for import to the customs territory of the Eurasian Economic Union by water transport’ that came into effect on July 1, 2019, has established all the prerequisites to increase the transit potential of the Kaliningrad region,” – UTLC ERA Director for relations with government bodies Larisa Korshunova noted at a meeting with the press.

Today the Company operates 57 routes in Europe – China – Europe traffic. Four new European destinations have been opened in 2019: Neumarkt, Barcelona, Bremerhaven, and Luxembourg. Over the 4 months of 2019, the mean time in transit China – Europe – China was reduced by 14% compared to the 12 months of 2018 and now amounts to slightly more than five days.