News bulletin – tanks and logistics

NEWS BULLETIN

TANKS & LOGISTICS

VTG ON SALE AGAIN

VTG is on the brink of being sold again, six years after Morgan Stanley Investment Partners (MSIP) and Joachim Herz Stiftung acquired a majority share. The two parties have agreed to sell their 72.55 per cent holding to the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA) and Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP), which will take equal shares. The deal values VTG at some €7 bn.

“The growth of Europe’s rail freight market is backed by a modal shift to rail as a key enabler of the decarbonisation of supply chains,” notes Khadem Al Remeithi, executive director of ADIA’s Infrastructure Department. “This investment in VTG aligns with our continued focus on pursuing infrastructure opportunities backed by strong energy transition-related tailwinds. For this transaction we have worked hand-in-hand with GIP, a long-standing partner, to invest in a market leading business with an established track record.”

Adebayo Ogunlesi, chairman/CEO of GIP, says: “We are excited by this investment and the opportunity to leverage GIP’s deep industry expertise in the rail sector to build on a market-leading European transport infrastructure platform. This acquisition is aligned with GIP’s energy transition and decarbonisation strategy as the European rail sector is set to benefit from significant policy support as one of the most deliverable and cost-effective near-term decarbonisation levers available to governments for meeting net zero targets in transport. This transaction complements other recent high quality investments to place GIP in an excellent position in the current macroeconomic environment. We look forward to partnering with ADIA and working with them to develop this unique platform.”

Christoph Oppenauer, managing director of MSIP, adds: “MSIP had identified VTG early on as a remarkably resilient transport asset with a stable track record and viewed it as having strong growth potential. Through multiple transformational measures and consistent portfolio alignment, MSIP believes it has prepared the company for the next stage of its growth story.”

Hamburg-based VTG currently has some 88,500 rail cars in its portfolio, the largest privately owned fleet in Europe; it comprises tank wagons, intermodal wagons, standard freight wagons and sliding-wall wagons as well as about 5,000 tank containers. Besides hiring out rail freight wagons and tank containers, it also provides multimodal logistical services and integrated digital solutions.

Completion of the transaction is subject to customary closing conditions. www.adia.ae www.vtg.com

MORE FOR MILKYWAY

Lingang Special Logistics, a joint venture between Lingang Group and Milkyway Chemical Supply Chain Service, has opened a new warehouse complex in the Shanghai Lingang Logistics Park in the Yangtze estuary.

The complex features five warehouses with a total capacity of 7,800 m2 for dangerous chemicals, including cold storage, temperaturecontrolled areas and dedicated areas for the storage of gases. It offers links to air, sea, rail, road and river transport. The partners plan to add other services, including distribution, export packing, import inspections and a bonded area.

“The launch of Lingang Special Logistics will provide essential hazardous chemical supply chain services for high-end manufacturing and industries such as new energy vehicles, chip semiconductors and biomedicine in the new area, greatly alleviating the cost and safety problems of cross-district storage and supply for enterprises,” says Yuan Guohua, chairman of Lingang Group.

Milkyway embarked last year on an aggressive global expansion plan and reports that it is progressing well. The Singapore branch, opened late last year, has already garnered contracts with several multinational chemical producers, including BASF, Dow, Arkema and ChevronPhillips, for local logistics services. Branches in the US and Germany

were established during the first quarter, offering air and sea forwarding as well as tank container operations. Milkyway is due to launch its new airfreight service between China and Budapest shortly, servicing European companies in the electronics, automotive and chemical industries. Further new branches in Houston, San Francisco, Hamburg and Milan are being planned.

“By promoting its process of globalisation, Milkyway realises part of the vision, which is to prosper the industry and become the catalyst for domestic chemical companies becoming global giants,” Milkyway states. www.mwclg.com

KENAN CONSOLIDATES

Kenan Advantage Group has begun combining its five fuels transport operating companies under one brand, KAG Energy. The five existing brands, Kenan Transport, Advantage Tank Lines, Klemm Tank Lines, Petro Chemical Transport and KAG West, together offer the largest fleet of tank trucks in North America, with operations in the US, Canada and Mexico.

“By creating this entity and combining these subsidiaries into one company, we further strengthen our exceptional services to our customers while making sure we are better unified as ‘One Team’ under KAG Energy,” says Jason Platt, executive vice-president of KAG Energy.

Platt acknowledges that the transition will take time: it is not merely a question of rebranding its trucks but of capturing the best practices of each operating group and combining its marketing and customer-facing services. In addition, merging the five fleets will allow better utilisation of its employed drivers and independent contractors, which will be significant in dealing with the challenge of the driver shortage. www.thekag.com

STOLT MOVES TO RAIL IN SAUDI

Stolt Tank Containers (STC) has signed an MOU with Saudi Arabia Railways (SAR) with a view to shifting transport of its tank containers off the roads and onto rail. “Many of our customers in the region have experienced strong market growth in recent years,” remarks Hans Augusteijn, president of STC. “This, coupled with high levels of ongoing investments in local infrastructure makes this transition a sensible decision that will benefit both customers and the planet. Using rail to transport our tanks will not only improve our service offering, it is also more environmentally sustainable than transporting goods by road.

“In 2020, we announced our ambition to reduce the carbon footprint of our transportation partners by 40 per cent (relative to 2008 levels) by 2030,” Augusteijn adds. “The agreement with SAR supports that ambition and our long-term strategy to offer a flexible choice of transport mode to our customers when they ship their bulk liquids with us. We are also working across our other markets to develop alternatives to road transport to safely move our tank containers around the globe.” www.sar.com.sa www.stolttankcontainers.com

HOYER INTO HYDROGEN

Hoyer has begun distributing liquefied hydrogen to service stations across Europe as part of its full-service portfolio of service station logistics. The move follows the consolidation earlier this year of its fuel distribution and gas logistics operations.

“We have specialists with expertise both in supplying service stations and in gas logistics. We have operated both business areas safely and reliably for many decades,” states Richard Thompson, commercial director of Hoyer’s Gas & Petroleum Logistics division.

By combining its know-how in handling gases with experience in digital, systemsupported supplies to service stations, Hoyer now also offers automated, prediction-based product inventory management and supply logistics for H2 as well. Thompson adds: “We can now provide service station network owners with our management services both for fossil fuels and also for alternative fuels. We undertake prognostic planning and full implementation for both product types, all from a single source, and of course with productspecific expertise.” www.hoyer-group.com