Society

Starting shot for intermodal train from China to Europe

Korla/Chiasso, May, 26^th, 2017    A historical moment for intermodal transportation on the east-west axis: at 12:00 on May, 26^th,, an 800 m long train loaded with 82 ISO tank containers leaves the railway station of Korla in North-West China heading to Europe (Germany and France). Swiss intermodal operator Hupac and Chinese chemical producer Markor intend to develop highly efficient, eco-friendly transport solutions and fully support the “One Belt, One Road” strategy.

After elaborated preparation, Hupac and Markor logistics experts set the starting shot for a train departing from Korla in north-west China and heading to Europe. The train carries 82 containers of high value chemical products, for a total length of 800 meters and a weight of 3000 tons. “We plan to cover the distance of 8000 km in 18 days, crossing borders and fulfilling customs procedures of six different countries”, says Hupac production director Silvio Ferrari. Exchange points for the Russian broad gauge are Dostyk in the east and Sestokay in the west. Involved railway companies are China Rail, Kazakh Railways (KTZ), Russian Railways (RZD), Belarus Railways (BC), Lithuanian Railways (LG) as well as Deutsche Bahn (DB).

Markor has been developing the “Xinjiang-Europe-Mediterranean” logistics corridor for a long time. With the purpose of speeding up internationalization, Markor actively responds to the Chinese “One Belt, One Road” strategy. The company is building up international cooperation by leveraging its geographical advantage in the core area of the Silk Road economic belt. Markor is approaching the European market and cooperates with leading companies such as Hupac. The company wishes to innovate intermodal solutions and build up logistic corridors that links Xinjiang, Europe and the Mediterranean area. The overall aim is to establish a big channel that connects resources, products and markets between west and east.

Hupac pursues a strategy of developing the intercontinental East-West axis as a natural integration to its traditional markets in Europe. With branch offices in Moscow since 2011 and in Shanghai since 2016, and with the procurement of own rolling stock for the Russian broad gauge, Hupac has prepared the ground for new business areas in the East and Far East. “We want to open our European network to traffic flows from/to Asia and provide stable, reliable solutions for intercontinental intermodal transportation, and actively participate in the Chinese One Belt One Road project”, underlines Peter Weber, Deputy managing director of Hupac and Head of corporate development.

Shipments arriving by rail from Asia can use Hupac’s tightly-knit network for all destinations in Europe, including the new Gotthard base tunnel crossing the Alps and connecting Italy and the Mediterranean region. Cooperation with Markor and its logistics partners is strategic for the Swiss company. ”Hupac aims at bundling volumes and building up stable connections. The pulling effect of regular intercontinental trains is enormous and will greatly help to develop the market”.

Profile of MarkorChem

Xinjiang Markor Chemical Industry Co., Ltd. was founded in 2004. It is located in Markor Chemical Industrial Park in the Economic and Technological Development zone, Korla, Xinjiang, China. By leveraging the comprehensive advantages of local natural gas resources in Korla, Markor’s BDO (1,4 butanediol) production has achieved good performance in energy saving and environmental protection. Markor enjoys the leading role in BDO downstream market, and has achieved outstanding performance in product quality and customer service.

Profile of Hupac

Hupac is Europe's leading intermodal network operator. Its network offers connections between the main European economic areas and to destinations as distant as Russia and the Far East, with around 110 trains per day. Hupac was founded in 1967 in Chiasso/Switzerland. The Hupac Group comprises 17 companies with locations in Switzerland, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Poland, Russia and China. The company has around 450 employees, 5,500 rail platforms and operates efficient terminals at key locations in Europe.

Media contact

MarkcorChem, Korla
Xu Tianhong

Tel. 0086 996 2239 666

mkhg1@markor.com.cn

Hupac Intermodal, Chiasso
Irmtraut Tonndorf

Tel. 0041 588 5580 20

itonndorf@hupac.com