APM Terminals Pipavav, one of India’s leading multipurpose ports, launched a rail connection to its Kanpur Inland Container (ICD) at the end of 2018, giving customers the opportunity to connect more efficiently to the gateway port.
This is happening at a time Nigeria is still struggling to revive its rail system an as alternative means of moving cargo, after the failed attempt to concession the rail line to General Electric.
The new connection was aptly named the ‘Polymer Express’ as the first train on the route was carrying 90 TEUs of polymer for Gail, the natural gas transmission company.
The terminal is one of India’s leading gateway ports for containers and liquid and dry bulk cargoes, serving customers in the state of Gujarat with road and rail networks to India’s hinterland and northwest.
“It will help exporters and importers to move their cargo faster and more safely using an environmentally friendly mode of transport,” said Keld Pedersen, managing director of APM Terminals Pipavav.
This follows another recent connection in Italy, where new routes to the north from the port of Vado Ligure, have been resumed.
Vado Ligure is a large Mediterranean port that specialises in handling fresh fruit and vegetables, so rapid transit is essential. The new trains from the terminal travel to Rivalta Scrivia where the Rail Hub Europe SpA is based.
These recent additions build on further expansions made last year in Mexico and Sweden.
Meanwhile in the Americas, a new block-train service from APM Terminals Lazaro Cardenas, Mexico, is helping avoid congestion and delays commonly associated with other west-coast ports, to reach hinterland destinations in the US and Mexico. Not only is the service faster, but it’s also proven to be much more secure than transport by truck.
Industry close watchers in Nigeria believed that the government needs to pay more attention to reviving the nation’s railway in order to ensure round-the-clock cargo movement using the latest technology to avoid congestion along Apapa corridor.
Uzoamaka Anagor-Ewuzie
