Logistics provider Global Container Services (GCS) is providing supply chain services for China’s Brilliance Auto and Taiwanese carmaker Luxgen through the port of Novorossiysk in Russia.
In two recently-signed contracts, GCS will be transporting complete knockdown (CKD) kits along a 470km route from the port to assembly plants in the southern Russian city of Cherkessk near the border with Georgia. Block trains or bonded trucks, operated by GCS subsidiary Ruscon, will carry the cargo to the plants. The NUTEP terminal at Novorossiysk has recently been upgraded to enable the handling of two block trains per day, each of which can carry between 54-56 40-foot containers.
In a statement to Automotive Logistics, Andrey Naraevskiy, director of liner and business development at GCS, said that the block-trains for automotive customers via the port of Novorossiysk have been offered since the mid-2000s, but that increasingly the company has been serving foreign car manufacturers, particularly those from China.
“The parts are being delivered from factories in the Far East to assembly plants in Southern Russia and then delivered to dealers across the country,” he said. “We already offer similar service of CKD parts delivery to three other Chinese car makers, and we believe the number of Asian brands assembled in Russia will experience further growth.”
Naraevskiy said that GCS was working with its customers to help them select the best carriers for the seafreight leg from Taiwan to China to ensure on time delivery, sustainable transit times and minimal overall costs, including local charges and extras.
The port of Novorossiysk has expanded in the last decade to become a gateway for a range of automotive companies. The terminal is an important location for the supply chain within central and southern Russian assembly plants.
As revealed at this year’s Automotive Logistics Russia conference held in Moscow in June (http://www.automotivelogisticsmagazine.com/news/black-sea-ports-back-in-focus) carmakers, including Toyota and Volkswagen, are looking for further development to support vehicle shipments through ports on the Black Sea, with Novorossiysk one of the leading port locations.
Other OEMs currently making use of the port of Novorossiysk to transport parts to their Russian plants include Ford, in addition to the Chinese carmakers Lifan, Geely and Chery.
