Following DB Schenker Logistics’ launch of a new business unit in Kaluga, Russia in April for logistics movements to Volkswagen plant there, the company’s Rail division has reaffirmed its intention to establish a joint venture with Russian Railways’ subsidiary TransContainer, with a focus on the wider automotive sector.
The scope of the venture is planned to include logistics services for both European and Russian carmakers and component suppliers in Kaluga. As well as Volkswagen, PSA Peugeot Citroën, Mitsubishi and Volvo all have operations there.
DB Schenker would only say that the joint venture is in preparation and was a completely new business for both partners in Russia. Further details are expected in the autumn of this year. However, DB Schenker has worked with TransContainer in the movement of freight to Kaluga for the past four years.
A spokesperson for DB Schenker confirmed that the launch of the ZAO Schenker location in Kaluga would strengthen the position of DB Schenker in the Russian automotive market.
DB Schenker is the general contractor and since 2008 has coordinated the services of six freight railways, various operators, as well as other sub-contractors between Central Europe and VW’s location in Russia.
ZAO Schenker is providing customers, including VW, with international and domestic land transport including rail forwarding, air and ocean freight, contract logistics and supply chain management. It is also offering customs clearance, and special projects, such oversized and heavy-lift cargo.
This week VW said it planned to boost production in Russia in the medium term as it sought growth potential outside Germany and made use of incentives in the country such as customs duty breaks granted to companies targeting vehicle output of 300,000 vehicles or more there a year by 2015, up from the current 25,000 vehicle threshold.
In other news DB Schenker will begin operating a regular shuttle service between the German ports of Bremerhaven and Hamburg and the Polish hub Poznan Kornik later this year. The service, which is being operated on behalf of DB Schenker’s customer Polzug Intermodal, will provide additional capacity for railfreight that is moved from the ports to the hinterland of Europe.
Polzug is a rail operator running a container service between Poland, wider Eastern Europe, the German ports and the port of Rotterdam.
