Logistics in Wallonia - Event

Economic Importance of Air Transport and Airport Activities in Belgium � Report 2009

2012-01-20 10:32:39

This Working Paper assesses the economic importance of the air transport sector in Belgium in terms of value added, employment and investment over the period from 2007 to 2009. The study is an update of ananalysis carried out by the Bank in 2009 (Working Paper No. 158).

The air transport sector under review spans not only activities directly linked to air transport, but also all business undertaken on the sites of Belgium's six airports (Antwerp, Brussels, Charleroi, Kortrijk, Li�ge, Ostend). Both the direct and indirect effects of the sector are estimated respectively on the basis of microeconomic data (drawn mainly from the Central Balance Sheet Office) and macroeconomic statistics (from the National Accounts Institute). The study also includes an analysis of the social balance sheet and looks into some financial ratios on the basis of data from the Central Balance Sheet Office.

Brussels Airport was the worst hit by the drop in worldwide air traffic observed in 2009 in the wake of the economic recession, losing its position as Belgium's leading freight airport to Liege Airport that year. The national airport is nevertheless still the leader in terms of value added and employment, as well as passenger transport, claiming almost three-quarters of the total in 2010, despite the exponential increase in traffic recorded at Charleroi Airport. Together, these two airports accounted for almost 97 % of passenger traffic into and out of Belgium in 2010.

In 2009, the air transport sector generated more than � 6.1 billion in direct and indirect value added (i.e. 1.8 % of Belgium's GDP) and provided jobs either directly or indirectly for 80,300 people in full-time equivalent terms (or 2 % of domestic employment in FTE), while direct investment in the sector reachedalmost � 380 million.

Over the three years considered in the study, there was a slight rise in the sector's direct and indirect value added (+0.7 % per year on average), a more marked increase in the total number of jobs (+5.2 % per year on average) and a significant contraction in direct investment (-15 % per year on average).

From the analysis of the social balance sheet, it can be seen that the average working time per air transport sector employee was well below the national average in 2009, while average staff costs were higher. More than a third of all people working in the air transport sector have higher education qualifications and one in every two workers followed one or more training courses in 2009.
Furthermore, the analysis of the aggregate annual accounts of firms operating in the air transport sector reveals that their return on equity was below the average observed for all non-financial corporations during the 2008 and 2009 crisis period. It was also noted that return on equity was considerably higher among firms in airport-related activities compared with that offirms belonging to the air transport cluster.(by Xavier Deville et Saskia Vennix).

For more information, clic here!

A new record for cargo transport at Liege Airport !

2012-01-05 14:43:46

The end of 2011 saw a new record for the transport of goods at Liege Airport, which is also registering a growth in passenger numbers.

During the month of December 2011, 55,807.95 tons of goods transited through Liege Airport, compared to 52,311.20 tons in December 2010, in other words a growth of 6.68%.

2011 has ended with a new record in cargo transport. In twelve months, a total of 674,469.82 tons came through Liege Airport, compared to 639,434.07 tons in 2010, which represents a growth of 5.47%.

The number of passengers increased by 3.4% with 309,206 passengers using the airport facilities compared to 299,043 passengers in 2010.

The number of aircraft movements also saw a significant growth of 12.14% with 54,403 movements in 2011 (compared to 48,515 movements in 2010).

This excellent report confirms the strategy of Liege Airport, as General Director Luc Partoune explains : "While international air transport of goods decreased by 4% on average in the six months that followed the financial crisis, our airport continues to develop, with 5% growth in traffic for the year. The operators present on site are expanding their business activities. This is undeniably a strong performance in a gloomy economic context. And as regards passengers, the strategic collaboration with tourist operators is beginning to yield results.�

In 2012, over 11 million euros in investments have been planned to improve the range of cargo services available, and commercial prospects (passengers, property, etc.) are good.

Source : Press release Liege Airport - 3 january 2012

Substantial investment plans for cargo services at Liege Airport

2011-12-28 16:16:52

Liege Airport has just finalised an extensive investment programme as part of its strategy for expansion. Over 11 million euros will be invested in 2012!

The investment is targeting:

- the construction of a new cargo handling facility in the north zone: this new warehouse completes the three which have already been built. With an area of 6,100 m�, its construction represents an investment cost of 5 million euros;

- the construction of a fourth storage tank for the fuel farm and improvements to the flow rate of the pipeline: given the development of air traffic and the growing need for aviation fuel (JET A-1), it has become necessary to increase the maximum available flow rate in the pipeline. Furthermore, storage capacity also needs to be improved. Adapting the pipeline, the infrastructures linked to this and the construction of a fourth storage tank total an investment of 4.6 million euros;

- the construction of a new Border Inspection Post (BIP): given Liege Airport's excellent situation for handling perishable cargo, it has proved necessary to set up a Border Inspection Post in the north zone (one has been operational in thesouth zone since 2003). This facility will mean that controls can be carried out on fresh produce and live animals in the best conditions. This constructionrepresents an investment of 1.2 million euros.

2012 will also see the completion of significant construction projects such as the 6,100 m� cargo handling facility (operational from March), the inauguration of a 6,500 m� business center in the south zone (in September), the 2,200 m� extension for a cargo handling facility in the south zone and the construction of a 2,000 m� business center in the north zone.

The total available surface area of cargo handling facilities will increase from 20,000 m� to more than 34,000 m�!

Luc Partoune, CEO of Liege Airport explains: �All these developments are designed to support business growth and to supply a quality of service adapted to the demandsof cargo companies and logistics businesses working on the site.�

Source : Press release - Liege Airport - 21 December 2011

Chongqing Airport (China) and Liege Airport (Belgium) sign an agreement to do more business together

2011-10-31 05:13:57

Liege Airport, Belgium and Chongqing Airport Group, China, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding today in order to encourage cooperation and strengthen the exchanges between the two airports.

The common goal is to engage in collaborative research into developing airport business, to secure ongoing synergies that are beneficial to the cooperation, and to improve the performance of each of the airports.

Liege Airport, the Flexport, is an international airport, with a full focus on cargo operations. In recent years, Liege Airport has had a continuous increase in the volume of traffic, and cargo handled. In a list of the most air cargo handled at European airports, Liege Airport is currently ranked number 1 in Belgium and number 7 in Europe. It boasts a large apron and cargo terminal and is the European hub for TNT Express Worldwide. TNT already connects the airports of Liege and Chongqing with scheduled direct flights of B747-400 Freighters.

CQA is the operator of Chongqing Jiangbei International Airport (�ChongqingAirport�) which is a major air hub in China situated in an important geographical location. In recent years, the traffic in Chongqing Airport has been growing rapidly in line with the economic growth of the region. Taking advantage of its unique location, Chongqing Airport is developing its route network to strengthen its position as an air hub.

�The partnership between Liege Airport and Chongqing Airport Group can offer much more than just another link between Europe and China. Via the existing customers in Liege, every remote corner of Europe can be reached. Daily cargo flights into Africa, as well as scheduled connections with the Americas, link all Liege Airport operators to the rest of the world,� said Mr. Luc Partoune, CEO ofLiege Airport.

�We are pleased with this opportunity to work with Liege Airport,� said Ms. CaoQianli, Deputy General Manager of Chongqing Airport Group.

�We believe that by cooperating and collaborating more together and by building joint connections, synergies will certainly develop, resulting in positive outcomes for both parties. Furthermore, I would like to thank Mr. Paul Woolley of TNTAirways for bringing together two international airports with great potential and establishing direct links,� she said.

Source ; Press release Liege Airport - 25 October 2011

The economic importance of the Belgian ports - Flash estimate 2010

2011-10-20 16:09:13

To meet the demand for rapidly available indicators signalling developments in value added and employment at Belgian ports, the National Bank of Belgium has since 2006 published a flash estimate based on the annual accounts filed up to the end of August. It is issued just over six months prior to the publication of the annual study containing exhaustive statistics on the ports' results.Note: The figures for 2010 are estimates produced by means of statistical techniques. Consequently, the final figures, which will be published in spring 2012, might be slightly different.

1 Two clusters are considered: the maritime cluster and the non-maritime cluster. The maritime cluster, which includes branches of the ports themselves, and whose existence is essential to them (management and maintenance, shipping, transhipment, affreightment, storage, dredging, fishing, maritime services, etc.). The segments that do not have an immediate economic link with port activity which exhibit a close interdependence with it are known as "non-maritime" and include the segments of industry, wholesale trade, transport and logistic services.

Comment

Transshipment volumes expanded in most of the Belgian maritime ports in 2010. The port of Ostend, which was hit by the closure of shipping routes to Great Britain in 2009, was the only one to register a decline. The ports of Ghent and Brussels made up all the cargo volume they had lost in 2009, while the port of Zeebrugge continues to gain ground. Transshipment in the ports of Antwerp and Li�ge is picking up again but to a smaller degree.

A striking feature of the year 2010 for the Belgian maritime ports was the relatively high number of restructuring plans. These structural changes naturally influence the outcome of the estimates. In the event of collective redundancies, as was the case at General Motors Belgium, the reduction in the number of people employed is not directly visible in changes in value added as a result of the staff costs engendered by restructuring efforts. Finally, the decline in activity witnessed in 2009 is still reflected in some operators' annual accounts for 2010.

After five quarters of recession, the world economy recovered somewhat in 2010. World production therefore began to rise again, driven mainly by the emerging and developing countries, particularly in Asia. In the euro area, the upturn in economic activity was held back by the fiscal stimulus measures coming to an end during the course of the year and also by the sovereign debt crisis. All in all, quite disparate trends were noted between the different economies in the European Union. Against this backdrop of an economy spluttering back to life, world trade grew by more than 12 %, enabling it to get back to volumes approaching those reached in 2008, albeit with lower growth prospects. This pickup in international trade had a direct impact on activity in the maritime ports.

Value added generated in the Belgian maritime ports grew by 10.7 % in 2010. Both the maritime cluster and the non-maritime cluster recorded an increase. However, unlike the other ports, Ostend saw a decline in the maritime cluster. In the non-maritime cluster, the ports of Antwerp, Ghent, and Ostend posted double-figure growth rates. In the port of Antwerp, the recovery of value added among the fuel producers and a major restructuring effort within the motor industry led to a sharp increase in the value added generated in the industrial sector. In the port of Ghent, most branches of industry gained ground. The port of Ostend enjoyed a strong rise in value added in the metalworking industry.

Contrary to value added, employment in the ports contracted in 2010. With the exception of Ghent, all ports saw a drop in employment. In the ports of Antwerp, Ostend and Li�ge, employment in the maritime cluster fell sharply. For the non-maritime cluster, only the port of Ghent managed to finish the year with a slightly positive trend. The Li�ge port complex was the worst hit, with a drop in employment of just under 6.6 %; the sharpest fall being in the metalworking industry. In the port of Antwerp, car manufacturing, cargo handling and road transport were affected most by the decline in employment. The number of jobs across all the Belgian maritime ports shrank by 2.6 %.

source: press release - national bank of Belgium - 17th October 2011

Liege Airport is 7th highest-ranking cargo airport in Europe!

2011-09-27 12:08:52

Airports Council International recentlypublished its figures for the first six months of 2011. Liege airport is ranked at 7thposition for European cargo airports. For the first time in its history, Liege airporthas surpassed Luxembourg airport (339,431 tonnes transported compared to325,194 tonnes transported as at end June 2011).

Liege Airport confirmed year after year it's really The Flexport, with servicestailored to the needs of cargo operators and a real alternative to congested,restrictive and prohibitively high cost large airports - Discover our key assetsthrough http://www.theflexport.com.

This European 7th place confirms the 2010 annual ranking of the ACI ('WorldAnnual Traffic Report for 2010'1). The report covers 1,300 airports in 157countries.

The European ranking for the highest performing cargo airports confirms theexceptional performance of Liege Airport in 2010. The number one cargo airportin Belgium since 2009, Liege Airport has reached European 7th place and 34thworldwide. In terms of growth, Liege Airport has achieved the 4th bestperformance globally! With exceptional growth of 32.7%, Liege Airport is on asimilar level to the best (Anchorage, Doha and Shanghai).

Below, you will find the European rankings for the first 6 months of 2011 and for2010.

European Airport ranking June 2011 : total cargo (metric tonnes)

RANKING��

COUNTRY��

AIRPORT/CODE�

Freight 2011�

�1

�2

�3

�4

�5

�6

�7

�8

�9

GERMANY�

FRANCE��

UNITED KINGDOM

NETHERLANDS

GERMANY

BELGIUM

LUXEMBOURG

TURKEY�

BELGIUM

FRANKFURT/MAIN (FRA)

CHARLES DE GAULLE

HEATHROW (LHR)

SCHIPOL�(AMS)�

COLOGNE/BONN (CGN)

LEIPZIG / HALLE (LEJ)

LI�GE (LGG)

LUXEMBOURG-FINDEL INTL (LUX)�

ATAT�RK INTL (IST)�

BRUSSELS NATL (BRU)

1.119.821

779.886

764.928

360.524

357.244

339.431�

325.194�

223.635�

217.036

Source : ACI
http://www.aci.aero/cda/aci_common/display/main/aci_content07_banners.jsp?zn=aci&cp=1-7-46^43915_725_2__

RANKING��

COUNTRY��

AIRPORT/CODE�

Freight 2010�

�1

�2

�3

�4

�5

�6

�7

�8

�9

GERMANY�

FRANCE��

NETHERLANDS

UNITED KINGDOM

LUXEMBOURG

GERMANY

BELGIUM

GERMANY

TURKEY�

�BELGIUM

FRANKFURT/MAIN (FRA)

CHARLES DE GAULLE

SCHIPOL�(AMS)�

HEATHROW (LHR)

LUXEMBOURG-FINDEL INTL (LUX)

COLOGNE/BONN (CGN)

LI�GE (LGG)

LEIPZIG/HALLE (LEJ)�

ATAT�RK INTL (IST)�

BRUSSELS NATL (BRU)

2.198.814

2.177.371

1.512.256

1.473.083

705.080

644.023

639.669�

638.488�

452.146�

429.904

Source : Press Release Liege Airport -�27 September 2011

Executive Master in International Supply Chain

2011-09-26 15:16:39

The Louvain School of Management ranked #1 Business School in Belgium (by the recent Financial Times) organizes for the 7th session, starting November 25 :

The Executive Master in International Supply Chain

It is an English spoken, part-time, international program : 3 residential days a month during 7 months.

This program has been chosen by the leading operating companies as #1 as well. The main key points are : lectures inside companies (Tetrapak, Ikea, Smart, Dow Corning, ..), an international audience, a state of the art skills based on real case studies, and the renown Louvain School of Management networking.

More information at : www.lsm-executive.be/supplychain

7% traffic escalation (waterway � rail � road) during the first six months of 2011 reports Li�ge Port Authority

2011-09-01 11:23:18

11,319,587 tonnes was the overall level of traffic (waterway-rail-road) handled by the Li�ge Port Authority during the first half of the year: up 771,875 tonnes or +7% on the first six months of last year.

A sharp increase was reported in the Li�ge Port Authority's waterway transport activities during the first half of 2011: 8,172,928 tonnes of waterborne freight was transhipped over the 6-month period, up 810,926 tonnes (+ 11%) on the first half of 2010. The upsurge is mainly attributed to imports of ores for ArcelorMittal's blast furnaces in Ougr�e (+430,000 tonnes) and agricultural produce for BioWanze (+ 170,000 tonnes). The extractive sector companies (Dumont Wautier, Carmeuse�) underpin these positive figures, reporting that exports of quarrying products are up by some 200,000 tonnes.

13,760 TEUs (20-foot equivalent units) was the level of container traffic handled by our two container terminals (Liege Container Terminal at Renory and Trilogiport Terminal at Monsin), or + 4,873 units, a 55% upturn compared with the first half of 2010. The growth in the level of container traffic is ascribed to the successful performance posted by all the regular services provided by the Li�ge Port Authority's concession-holders and their new burst of business vitality.

Road traffic achieved 2,134,804 tonnes, up 39,369 tonnes or +2 % compared with the first half of 2010.

Meanwhile, rail traffic was slightly down (7%) during� the first six months of 2011, compared with the same period last year: 1,011,855 tonnes handled during the first half of 2011, down 78,420 tonnes, as a result of the recent wagonload price increases plus concerns about rail service providers.

Emile-Louis Bertrand, the Li�ge Port Authority's Chief Executive Officer, says "the Li�ge Port services have benefitted from the strong recovery in shipping activities worldwide and river traffic since 2010."

As for the outlook for the second half of the year, Emile-Louis Bertrand believes: "the prospects for the second half of the year are less clear, with business expected to decline as a result of a further slowdown in economic activity and, more importantly, the closure of the ArcelorMittal blast furnaces by the end of year. The shutdown means the immediate loss of iron ores for the Li�ge Port Authority and the end of activities at the Chertal coking plant and steelworks. Solely the rolling mill will continue to operate, served with slabs from Arcelor-Mittal-Dunkirk."

Source : Press release - Liege Port Authority -� 29/08/2011

Cushman & Wakefield named exclusive agent by CETIM and Deutsche Lagerhaus Trilogiport for the commercialization of Trilogiport (Li�ge, Belgium).

2011-08-16 15:04:28

Cushman & Wakefield have been named exclusive agent by Deutsche Lagerhaus Trilogiport GmbH u. Co KG and its Benelux partner, CETIM, for the commercialization of� their 150,000 sq.m. logistic warehouse facility located on the Trilogiport site, Li�ge.

Trilogiport Li�ge is a multimodal logistic development enjoying an absolute top location, along the Canal Albert, in Hermalle-sous-Argenteau. As this is the most in-land located container terminal on the Antwerp-Germany axis, it is no wonder that Deutsche Lagerhaus, one of the strongest German players in the logistics sector, specialized in multimodal sites, decided to be involved in what they consider to be an important outpost outside Germany on this site; it forms an ideal link with the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp. Together with their Belgian partner CETIM, Deutsche Lagerhaus Trilogiport have taken up a concession of 300,000 sq.m. of land, for the development of 150,000 sq.m. of� state-of-the-art warehouses, expected to be put on the market in several phases as from the end of 2012. Jack Berben, Head of Industrial Agency at Cushman & Wakefield Belgium, comments: �Whilst the overall economy is growing in Western-Europe, Germany is currently living an economic boom. Increasing traffic congestion indicates that logistic locations aiming at sustainable performances in the future have to adopt multimodal solutions. Trilogiport is a true inland� 'extended gateway' of the seaports; the new container terminals on the Canal Albert connect naturally with the ports of Antwerp, Zeebrugge and Rotterdam; there will be a railway terminal on site, and a new bridge over the Meuse river will give the site an immediate connection with the E25 highway. Moreover, Li�ge is a superior and very central location as far as distribution to and from the most important European markets is concerned; the large German urban regions like the Ruhrgebiet are next door, but so are France, the Benelux, and even Northern Italy�. Deutsche Lagerhaus have been focusing on inner-port logistics for many years now. They are currently letting 980,000 sq.m. of warehouses in 26 sites across Germany and Switzerland. Li�ge becomes the farthest east-located site, and the gateway by excellence to the Benelux ports. The container terminal has a surface of 15 ha, and a total of 1850 m of loading docks.For many years now, Jean-Pierre Staelens, board member of CETIM and a board member of the advisory board of Deutsche Lagerhaus, has been the main point of contact in the Benelux for various big German players active in the real estate sector. To him, the fact that Deutsche Lagerhaus wanted to be involved in Li�ge in the frame of their expansion comes as no surprise at all: �Their 'Deutsche Gr�ndlichkeit' left nothing unexamined. They know how excellent the location is, of course; but they're also looking at further opportunities for their logistic clients: availability of a qualitative workforce that is pretty scarce in many regions, level of education, productivity, and language knowledge are among the qualities of Li�ge�. According to Emile-Louis Bertrand , General Manager of the Li�ge Port Authority ( Port autonome de Li�ge), Li�ge is located in the centre of a dense economic region: � The port of Li�ge is already the third largest inland port in Europe, after Duisburg and Paris. The development of Trilogiport is of prime importance for its further expansion. In addition to this, the Li�ge Airport in Bierset is very close as well: since last year, the Li�ge Airport is bigger than the Brussels Airport in terms of cargo freight, and ranks 8th at the European level. When the Eurocarex high-speed freight trains will become effective, this will be another extra added value for Li�ge. For all these reasons, the great expectations around the commercialization of Trilogiport are no surprise at all. Regarding all these assets Liege Port Authority and the Albert Canal should hopefully be integrated in the TEN-T core network developed by the European Commission�.

For more information, please liaise with Jack Berben, Cushman & Wakefield, +32 474 930 829.

Source : Press Release - 2011 - Marketing & Research Department Jef Van Dorslaer

Commission launches new Neighbourhood Transport Action Plan

2011-07-08 11:14:00

European Commission - Press release

Brussels, 07 July 2011 - The European Commission today published a new Neighbourhood Transport Action Plan to strengthen transport links with neighbouring regions to the East and South of of the EU. The plan proposes more than 20 concrete measures, in the short and longer term, to make transport connections smoother, safer and more reliable. At the same time, it will deepen market integration to the advantage of both the EU and its neighbouring regions. The plan was presented on 7 July 2011 by Vice President Siim Kallas responsible for Transport and and Commissioner Stefan F�le, Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighbourhood policy.

Vice-President Kallas said: "Freedom of movement is something we all tend to take for granted in Europe, but it shouldn't stop at the border. Today if we are serious about a relationship with our neighbours we need to provide the infrastructure which is essential for flows of goods and people across borders and cut away the bureaucracy and bottlenecks."

Commissioner F�le said: "In the new and ambitious European Neighbourhood Policy launched on 25 May of this year, we offer a deeper economic integration to our neighbours in the East and South. This action plan proposes the concrete transport measures that we aim to put in place for the benefit of citizens and companies both in the neighbourhood and in Europe.''

Transport cooperation with the EU's neighbouring regions1 has so far taken place under a number of bilateral and regional initiatives -there is already, for example, a transport regional initiative for neighbours to the South. This new action plan2 builds on the results achieved so far, strengthens in particular connections to the east and brings together regional transport cooperation into a single policy.

Key measures for connecting the transport systems of the EU and its neighbours include:

�Extending the EU's internal aviation market and Single European Sky to neighbouring regions;

�Joining up the Trans-European Transport Network with infrastructure of the EU's neighbours through priority transport projects;

�Making better use of rail freight potential by opening markets and by alleviating technical barriers such as differences in rail gauge sizes;

�Streamlining the implementation of regional transport cooperation, by establishing an Eastern Partnership Transport Panel to oversee cooperation with neighbours to the east;

�Making sea transport with the neighbouring countries more efficient, including in the longer term, through their inclusion in the �Blue Belt� of free maritime movement in and around Europe;

�Helping neighbouring countries to improve road safety;

For full details of more than 20 measures set out in the Action plan see MEMO/11/488.

These actions up to 2013 will be financed with existing resources through better prioritisation of projects and measures. In its recent Communication on a Budget for Europe 2020, the Commission proposed adding flexibility to possible financing for strategic infrastructure projects linking the EU and its neighbours. This will be followed up in the negotiations on the future financial framework.

What are the next steps?

The Commission's plan will next be presented to the Council and the European Parliament. In October 2011, the new Eastern Partnership Transport Panel which will oversee the implementation of the measures to the East, will be launched at a ministerial conference organised under the Polish EU Presidency (24-25 October 2011 in Krakow.)

More information on transport cooperation with neighbouring countries at:

http://ec.europa.eu/transport/international/regional_cooperation/european-neighbourhood_en.htm

Contacts :

Anca Paduraru (+32 2 296 64 30)

Helen Kearns (+32 2 298 76 38)

Dale Kidd (+32 2 295 74 61)�

1 :

Neighbouring regions are countries covered by the European neighbourhood policy and the enlargement policy, which do not have already special relations with the EU. East: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova, Ukraine; South: Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Occupied Palestinian Territory, Syria, Tunisia. Candidate countries: Croatia, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Turkey and Iceland. Potential candidates: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo (under UNSCR 1244/99). Iceland is not covered by the Communication in view of the focus on transport connections and market integration

2 :

Commission Communication "The EU and its neighbouring regions: A renewed approach to transport cooperation", COM(2011) 415

Liege Airport increases facilities for handling perishables

2011-07-05 19:25:33

LIEGE AIRPORT ranks among Europe's leading airports for the handling of perishables and over the years has developed internationally recognised expertise in this field. Fish, shellfish, flowers, fruit, vegetables, etc. go through the airport and require appropriate handling.

To achieve this goal, the airport was equipped several years ago with a border inspection post (PIF). Operational since 2003, it has been increasingly busy, dealing not only with fresh produce, but also live animals.

In order to develop its ability to handle products destined for human consumption as well as other products such as vaccines, serums, etc., Liege Airport needs to improve capacity for handling these types of produce by installing additional purpose-built facilities.

This is why a new centre for perishable goods is being inaugurated on 5th July 2011 in freight hall I (bldg 46).

This facility includes:

- an area of 812 m� for handling goods at a maximum temperature of 15�;

- 4 fridges with a total area of 241 m� for storage at temperatures of 0� to 6�.

The total investment is �350,000.

Total cold storage facilities at Liege Airport now exceed 1,500 m�. This provides new development possibilities for companies already operating onsite and for future clients.

Source : Press release Liege Airport -5th July 2011

Zetes acquires RFIDea

2011-05-31 21:42:38

Zetes (represented in 16 countries with a turnover of 216 million euro in 2010), the European leader in Automatic Identification Solutions and Services for goods and people, just acquired RFIDEA.

From the commercial point of view, Zetes has an existing sales network covering the four corners of Europe. This will greatly benefit RFIDea in its business development.

David Dalla Vecchia, General Manager of RFIDea: �As a part of the Zetes group, we will be able to bring our solutions to more customers and more markets. We are happy to be a part of a solid organization that continues investing in research and development to deliver innovative solutions, and we are looking forward to contributing to the Group's success.�

From a technical perspective, for many years,�RFIDea has been recognized as The expert in Automatic Identification and Traceability Solutions based on RFID technology; so did Zetes!

Alain Wirtz, CEO of Zetes: �Even though RFID has been hyped up over the last years, Zetes believes that in a supply chain environment, the technology can bring the right benefits in certain business cases, for example, in situations that involve reusable asset tracking or highly regulated environments. We are happy to welcome the specialists of RFIDEA to our team, who will help us provide our customers with sophisticated RFID solutions to address their challenges more efficiently.�

From now on, customers will benefit not only from the expertise, the availability, the flexibility and the professionalism of the entire team of RFIDea, but also from the stability, the geographical coverage, and the competence of the Zetes Group in other identification and traceability technologies.Zetes is indeed renown for, among others, inline marking (e.g. for serialization issues), automatic labeling of items / boxes / pallets, voice solutions for warehouses, mobile applications for data capture and interfacing with ERP's such as SAP.

Baxter, UCB, Tri-Vizor and H.Essers create world's first community for orchestrated horizontal collaboration in transport and logistics or �carpooling for cargo�.

2011-05-23 09:43:34

UCB and Baxter, two global healthcare companies, will bundle their pharmaceutical supply chains in Eastern Europe together with Tri-Vizor, a spin-off company from the University of Antwerp. This accomplishes the world's first example of orchestrated bundling or �carpooling for cargo�. Logistics service provider H.Essers will provide the operational know-how and intermodal capacity for the horizontal collaboration. The innovative partnership is powered by an advanced control tower which uses Microsoft cloud computing technology.

Baxter is a global healthcare company with expertise in medical devices, pharmaceuticals and biotechnology and has its European distribution center in Lessines, ca. 40 km from Brussels. UCB is a global biopharmaceutical company which ships products to international customers from its European distribution center in Braine-L'Alleud, ca. 35 km south of Brussels.

University of Antwerp spin-off company Tri-Vizor previously detected significant bundling and synergy potential between the European transport networks for temperature sensitive products of both healthcare multinationals. Subsequently, the neutral cross supply chain orchestrator invited UCB and Baxter around the table to forge a unique horizontal partnership for collaborative logistics.

As a result, UCB and Baxter signed an agreement with Tri-Vizor to bundle and orchestrate their temperature controlled pharmaceutical flows to Eastern Europe.

As a neutral orchestrator and community manager, Tri-Vizor will capture and synchronize the transport orders of both pharmaceutical companies in real-time. This enables full truck movements and even intermodal (rail) transport, resulting in a more sustainable and smooth supply chain with significant benefits for the environment.

Because of its experience in temperature controlled shipments, H.Essers was selected as transport partner to operationalize the bundled flows, using rail connections where possible. After a successful pilot test in Romania last month, UCB and Baxter will now implement other Eastern European destinations and plan to expand the horizontal collaboration with other pharmaceutical companies and tradelanes.

At the heart of this horizontal partnership lies Tri-Vizor's "Cross Supply Chain Cockpit�", a collaborative transport control tower developed with state-of-the art Microsoft Azure� cloud computing technology. This software cockpit will be used to orchestrate the physical, information and financial flows of the community.

Further details of this groundbreaking project have been revealed at the eyefortransport Horizontal Collaboration Summit in the Brussels Renaissance Hotel on Friday May 20th. (www.eft.com/hc).

Source : Press Release Baxter, UCB, Tri-Vizor, H. Essers - May 17th

Liege Airport goes green !

2011-05-20 08:33:44

By 2016, no less than 30% of the electricity supply in Wallonia will come from renewable sources. That's the target fixed by the Walloon government. Eager to support this ambitious plan as much as possible, and having for many years integrated protecting the environment in its business strategy, Liege Airport is switching to a 100% green electricity supply.

Liege Airport's annual electricity consumption is around 10,000,000 kWh. Energy consumption has been increasing for some time and the extension of the runway is expected from this year onwards to result in increased consumption of some 50,000 kWh per year (lighting of exterior areas, airstrip markers and beacons). The consumption of the future north freight hall and the office buildings is estimated at around 800,000 kWh per year in total. This will be in addition to the current consumption as from 2012.

This switch to a totally green electricity supply (hydro-electricity, biomass, solar, wind-generated) affirms and reinforces Liege Airport's environmental policy:

Intelligent energy consumption;
An environmental management system which has been ISO 14001 compliant since 2003;
The replacement of 900 halogen beacons with LED ones;
A commitment during 2011 to the "Airport Carbon Accreditation" system;
The future B50 office block featuring low energy consumption (insulation, geothermic, heat-recovery ventilation, solar panels, etc).

This choice of a 100% green electricity supply is the result of Liege Airport's willingness to engage increasingly in a strategy of sustainable development.

Source : Press release Liege Airport : 19 may 2011

EU grants �170 million to vital infrastructure projects across Europe

2011-03-01 12:21:52

The European Commission today announced the projects selected to receive a total of �170 million of trans-European transport network (TEN-T) funds to build and upgrade vital transport infrastructure across the European Union. The grants, which stem from the 2010 TEN-T annual and multi-annual calls published on 19 May, will help Member States to build missing transport links, remove bottlenecks and increase the safety and security of transport, with a special focus on making transport more sustainable, promoting the interconnection of different transport modes, accelerating and facilitating the implementation of projects and providing support for public�private partnerships.

Commission Vice-President Siim Kallas, responsible for transport, said: "I am delighted to be signing the decision today that gives the green light to �170 million of the TEN-T budget to co-finance key infrastructure projects of European added value. These include projects in the fields of Motorways of the Sea and River Information Services, under the multi-annual programme, and projects under the annual programme helping us to prepare for future transport priorities: notably making transport greener, connecting Europe's east and west, and providing support to public-private partnerships."

Over the course of 2010, 51 projects involving 24 Member States were selected to receive funding as part of three separate calls. All projects were evaluated on the basis of their relevance to TEN-T priorities and policy objectives: their maturity, their impact (particularly socio-economic and environmental) and their quality in terms of completeness, clarity, soundness and coherence. The awarded funding helps to attract substantial public and private financing, with the leverage effect being almost five times the level of EU assistance (see MEMO/11/101).

The 2010 multi-annual work programme (�112.4 million in total funding) aimed to finance the highest priorities of the TEN-T network, and focused on three fields:

�Motorways of the Sea (MoS ), providing viable alternatives for congested roads by shifting freight to sea routes � eight projects selected, �84.9 million in funding.

�River Information Services (RIS), involving traffic management infrastructure on the inland waterway network � five projects selected, �7.1million in funding.

�Air traffic management systems and functional airspace blocks (ATM/FABs) � four projects selected, �20.5 million in funding, which was allocated in a separate call published on 16 February.

The 2010 annual work programme (�78.2 million in total funding) complements the efforts developed under the multi-annual work programme with a view to better utilise scarce EU funds and maximise the impact in priority areas. It is focused on three priorities:

Priority 1: Promoting the development of an integrated and environmentally friendly transport system as well as studies for the preparation of deployment projects contributing to the addressing of climate change � 13 projects selected, �32.1 million in funding.

Priority 2: Accelerating/facilitating the implementation of TEN-T projects (studies for all modes, works for mature projects, notably in the rail and inland waterways sectors), as well as projects supporting the Single European Sky policy � 18 projects selected, �41.1 million in funding.

Priority 3: Studies to support Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs) - three projects selected, �4.9 million in funding.

The projects will be managed by the TEN-T Executive Agency, under the auspices of the Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport of the European Commission.

A full list of the selected proposals is in MEMO/11/101

For more information:

http://ec.europa.eu/tentea or e-mail: TENT-AGENCY@ec.europa.eu

Source : Press Release Europe - 21st February 2011

Norbert Dentressangle to buy TDG

2010-12-09 11:47:56

French group Norbert Dentressangle has this morning announced its intention to purchase British group TDG. The letter of intent has been signed, and the takeover is only awaiting the approval of the European competition authorities.

The two groups have relatively similar profiles, combining transport activities (58% of the turnover of Norbert Dentressangle and 32% of TDG), logistics (43% for ND and 54% for TDG) and transport chartering (13% for TDG and a recently launched activity at ND). They have also both founded their development on an asset-based approach, even if the profile of TDG is slightly less pronounced than that of the French company.

Cash

In concrete terms, Norbert Dentressangle will acquire the shares of Laxey Logistics (the holding company which owns TDG) from investment fund Douglas Bay. TDG is currently valued at 192 million pounds sterling, some 235 million Euros, but this may be revised upwards before the closing date, expected to be in January of next year. �The value of certain real estate assets and the integration of second half profits should bring the definitive purchase price up to around 205 million pounds�, explained CEO Patrick Bataillard during a press conference. Norbert Dentressangle will finance this transaction from its reserves with just a part via its investment credit lines.

International development

According to CEO Fran�ois Bertreau, this takeover will speed up the international development of the Norbert Dentressangle group, for which the proportion accounted for by France in the turnover figure has decreased from 75% to 40% in barely five years. In the future, 53% of the group's turnover will come from the transport division, which is to strengthen considerably in the transport of hazardous goods, large volumes (principally in the UK), and fuel transport (also mainly in the UK). This division now has a fleet of 8,000 tractor units and 11,000 semi-trailers.

Where logistics are concerned, which will account for 44% of turnover, Norbert Dentressangle is inheriting a healthy client portfolio and seeing its real estate portfolio increase to 6.5 million square metres of warehousing, while also taking advantage of supply chain expertise which, amongst others, has enabled TDG to develop substantial horizontal collaboration projects with groups such as Kimberley-Clark, in the same manner as those which Norbert Dentressangle has also established in the domain of tyres.

And finally, this takeover will enable Norbert Dentressangle to attain an interesting critical size (100 million Euros of turnover� at least) in the domain of shipping, a domain in which ND launched itself on its own in January, and which received a first boost on November 3rd with the takeover of the activities of Schneider Logistics.

Source : Truck Europe - Claude Yvens -�29th November

Montea raises its occupancy rate to 93.6%

2010-11-22 16:19:02

Montea raises its occupancy rate to 93.6% : Two new lease agreements for 9,543 m� and 10,415 m�

Montea�announces today the signing of a new lease agreement with the interior and furniture company, Pomax, plus a second new lease contract with the logistics company, Stockage Industriel (Vincent Logistics). As a result of the active commercial policy it has implemented over the past quarter, Montea has succeeded in increasing its occupancy rate1 in a difficult market from 91.2% to 93.6%. These new transactions bring the prospect of an occupancy rate of 95% by the end of the year within reach.

9,543 m� leased for 9 years to Stockage Industriel in Herstal�Milmort

Montea and Stockage Industriel (Vincent Logistics) have signed a 9-year lease agreement (with an option to terminate after 3 years) for a unit extending over 9,543 m� in Herstal-Milmort (Li�ge). The new tenant, which specialises in the storage and logistics, will use the space to store dry food. The lease transaction with Stockage Industriel was handled by property brokers Jones Lang LaSalle and King Sturge.

The site at Herstal�Milmort is divided into 4 different units. At the end of October, Montea also announced the lease of another unit to S.M.I.W.

10,415 m� leased for 9 years to Pomax in Mechelen

The interior and furniture company, Pomax, will move into its new unit at the Montea site in the Zandvoortstraat, Mechelen, at the end of this year. The lease agreement between Pomax and Montea is for a period of 9 years and 7 months (with an option to terminate after 3 years).

Pomax is leasing 10,208 m� of storage space and 207 m� of offices, giving the new tenant over 45% of the entire site in Mechelen. The warehouse space will be used mainly to store furniture, as well as interior and gift items. The lease transaction with Pomax was handled by property brokers King Sturge and DTZ.

93.6% occupancy rate

On 30th of June 2010, Montea had an occupancy rate of 91.23%. In its annual report, Montea stated that its greatest priority in 2010 was to address the issue of vacancies in its portfolio. The lease agreements with Pomax and Stockage Industriel are part of the active commercial policy implemented by Montea to achieve that aim. Based on its current view of the logistics market, Montea management is confident that it will round off the fourth quarter with an occupancy rate of 95%, in line with its objectives.

Source : Press release Montea - 9 november 2010

Montea signs new lease agreement with Soci�t� de Maintenance Industrielle Wertz

2010-11-22 16:18:21

Montea signs new lease agreement with Soci�t� de Maintenance Industrielle Wertz (S.M.I.W.) for 7,779 m� of storage space and 181 m� of office space

Montea�announces today the signing of a new 9-year rental agreement with S.M.I.W. NV for 7,779 m� of storage space and 181 m� of office space. The site at Herstal-Milmort (Li�ge) is divided into 4 separate units. Montea and S.M.I.W. have signed a 9-year lease agreement (6 years of which are fixes) for one of the units totalling 7,960 m� of space. The new tenant will use the unit to store foodstuffs.

With a total floor area of 28,340 m�, the property at Herstal-Milmort represents 10% of Montea's total portfolio in Belgium. The site is ideally situated for a logistics business as it is located close to the E313 motorway to Antwerp and the E40 to Li�ge.

The lease transaction with S.M.I.W., specialist in storage, tracking, handling and management of stock, was coordinated by the real estate brokers Jones Lang Lasalle and DTZ.

Iwan Wertz, President of S.M.I.W. comments : � The Herstal-Milmort site is ideally located next to the E40. Montea offered an appropriate solution to our requests for storage. We are also satisfied to work together with a known real estate partner like Montea. �

Source : Press release Montea - 27 october 2010

New European legislation to boost rail freight

2010-10-25 14:52:50

Rail freight in Europe will be given a boost thanks to new European Union rules designed to foster the development of a high-quality rail infrastructure management at international level. The new legislation, published today in the Official Journal, makes it mandatory to create a European rail network for competitive freight based on international freight corridors. This will help to reinforce cooperation between infrastructure managers and make rail freight services become more competitive and attractive.

European Commission Vice-President Siim Kallas, responsible for transport, said: "In my vision of railways for 2050, they would be dominant in freight transport over distances greater than 300 km. The corridors, one-stop shops and increased cooperation covered by this legislation will enable rail freight providers to attract additional customers to this environmentally friendly mode of transport. It is another step towards the realisation of the dream."

The new regulation

This regulation is aimed at developing high-quality rail infrastructure at an international level. It will enable the creation of nine rail freight corridors linking the main industrial regions of Europe.

Improved operations on international rail freight corridors will result from stronger cooperation between rail infrastructure managers on various operational issues, such as coordination of investments and works, capacity allocation and traffic management with due guarantee given to rail freight in terms of performance, reinforced cooperation with terminals, centralised publication of conditions for access and accrued powers for regulatory bodies to monitor non-discriminatory access. To this end, infrastructure managers will have to put in place a suitable governance structure for each corridor.

Shippers, forwarders and combined transport operators will be allowed to request capacity over these corridors to meet their logistic needs under the best conditions through dedicated one-stop shops. The levels of quality of the supply of rail infrastructure services along freight corridors will be constantly reviewed and published.

Why is this regulation needed?

International rail freight transport has suffered in recent years from the lack of sufficient cooperation and voluntary coordination between infrastructure managers which prevented the level of services from being raised. This regulation will boost cross-border cooperation and coordination to give fresh impetus to the rail freight sector along major international rail corridors while taking full advantage of existing initiatives to modernise rail infrastructure under the TEN-T and cohesion policy and to deploy the European Rail Traffic Management System (ERTMS).

Having these rail corridors fully operational will lead to more capacity for freight on these routes, while enabling operators to offer a better service, in terms of increased punctuality and shorter journey times. This will help rail freight to better compete with other transport modes.

Next steps

The new regulation will enter into force on 9 November 2010.

More information

http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2010:276:0022:0032:EN:PDF

http://ec.europa.eu/transport/rail/index_en.htm

Source :�Press release�Europa - 20 octobre 2010

Extending the runway creates new horizons in terms of development

2010-09-08 15:00:26

The extension of the main runway at Liege Airport has become a reality, �finally�, according to those who have been waiting patiently for it! This 413-metre flow of bitumen has not been a long, tranquil river�

The R&D bureau was set up at the end of 1999 and the project went through its technical studies, licence application and incident study process, until July 2004 when the planning permit was granted. The new permit (granted in September 2006) was also attacked from all sides, fortunately without success. In June 2007, the works contract was assigned to the temporary association, Gal�re-Aswebo-Ferrari. The building work started in March 2008 and was completed on 15 August 2010 right on schedule.

This significant worksite covered 4 different contracts, namely:

1. The contract to extend the runway proper
2. A run-off tunnel to divert the water towards to Meuse from the new Bierset stormwater tank
3. The relocation of the airport supply pipeline
4. The replacement of the ILS localizer antenna for the 05R runway.

To download the whole press file click here.

Source : Press file Liege Airport - 07th September 2010

Economic importance of the Belgian ports: Flemish maritime ports, Li�ge port complex and the port of Brussels � Report 2008

2010-07-22 14:10:34

The National Bank of Belgium publishes an annual update of the study on the economic importance of the Flemish maritime ports - Antwerp, Ghent, Ostend and Zeebrugge -, the Li�ge port complex and the port of Brussels.

Each port's contribution to the national economy is estimated on the basis of an analysis of its economic, social and financial situation, over the period from 2003 to 2008. The three variables involved in the main developments are valued added, employment and investment. This study also highlights indirect impact interms of valued added and employment. It features a summary of the social balance sheet for all the ports covered in this publication. The analysis of the financial results draws on a survey of the return on equityratio, liquidity and solvency ratios.

After the excellent results seen in the year 2007, total maritime traffic using the Flemish ports continued to expand 2008 to reach 267 million tonnes transhipped, a new record. Container transport grew by 6.7 p.c. in the space of a year, while solid bulk transport was up by 8.8 p.c. On the other hand, conventional general cargo shipping declined by 11.2 p.c. and ro-ro traffic shrank by 4.4 p.c. Liquid bulk transport increased by 2p.c. An expansion of bulk transport can be observed in all the Flemish ports. The same goes for container transport, except in Ostend, where this type of transport, already reduced to a minimum, has stopped altogether. The port of Antwerp's relative share in the Hamburg-Le Havre range saw no change from 2007. Traffic using the ports of Brussels and Li�ge was also on an upward trend in 2008. For the first time ever, the public port in Li�ge exceeded the figure of 16 million tonnes transhipped by water. Traffic in and out of the port of Brussels posted an increase of 13.2 p.c. to just less than 4.9 million tonnes of goods transhipped.

Direct value added in the Belgian ports fell by 0.7 p.c. in 2008. At opposite ends of the growth scale are the port of Ostend whose value added increased by more than 10 p.c. and the port of Ghent where value added dropped by 12.6 p.c. under the influence of falling profits in the motor and metalworking industries. In the port of Zeebrugge, almost all sectors of activity are expanding, with the exception of inland transport, generating a 5.1 p.c. rise in value added. The figure for the port of Antwerp's value added was up by 1.6 p.c. Shipowners accounted for the most growth, in both value and percentage terms, while a fall in value added could be observed in industrial and commercial activities. A decline in the same sectors was recorded in the port of Ghent, too. On the back of good results posted by a few of the firms operating there, the port of Ostend registered strong growth in value added (+10.3 p.c.). The Li�ge port complex enjoyed buoyant growth in the chemicals end energy industries, with its value added rising by 5.1 p.c. In the port of Brussels, the decline in industry was offset by an increase in the other service sectors, so that the total direct value added for the port actually rose by 1.1 p.c.

Although not rising as quickly as in 2007, indirect value added was up by 3.4 p.c. Total value added increased by 1.1 p.c. but its share in Belgium's GDP went down slightly by 0.1 p.c. to 9 p.c.

Direct employment in the Belgian ports increased by 0.4 p.c in 2008. Growth was once again particularly strong in Ostend (+3.9 p.c.) and it were the same sectors of activity as the previous year that were behind this forte progression: the metalworking industry and road transport. Employment in the port of Antwerp fellslightly (-0.6 p.c.), hit mainly by the large decline in the motor industry, while the maritime cluster registered amarked rise in employment, notably among cargo handlers and in shipbuilding and repair. The port of Ghent was not hit too badly by falling employment in the metalworking industry and registered an increase of 0.5p.c. Employment in the port of Zeebrugge is on the rise, thanks mainly to the maritime cluster and more specifically to handling, the public sector, shipping agents and freight forwarders, as well as shipowners. In the Li�ge port complex, the energy and metalworking industry buoyed up employment. Direct employment in the port of Brussels remained stable, the downturn in industry and inland transport being offset by an improvement in the other sectors.

The share of direct port employment in Belgium's total domestic employment was 3.1 p.c. Combined with indirect effects, total employment in the ports is up by 2 p.c. In 2008, it accounted for 7 p.c. of domestic employment in Belgium.

Investment in Belgian ports rose by 3.2 p.c. to reach 4,931 million euro, setting a new record. Investment in the port of Antwerp increased by 3.7 p.c., the strong growth in value terms in this port being concentrated incargo handling. Still posting an investment volume above the one billion euro mark, shipowners are still the largest investors. Driven by the strong growth in the energy sector, investment in the port of Ghent expanded by 2.4 p.c. In the port of Ostend, the energy industry, as well as port facilities and dredging, shored upinvestment, which posted a 16.3 p.c. rise for the year 2008 as a whole. On the other hand, investment in the port of Zeebrugge fell back by 19.3 p.c., as a few major projects were completed. The Li�ge port complex once again enjoyed an exceptionally good year. Production of motor fuels and the other services generated sizeable investment volumes, enabling the latter category to post a growth rate of 27.7 p.c. Finally, investment in the port of Brussels expanded healthily, mainly as a result of the infrastructure renovation work undertaken by the port authority (to clean up the Carcoke site).

Source : Press release�NBB - 15 july 2010

Download the document (in French)

Liege Airport is investing heavily to save energy

2010-06-22 18:46:34

As part of our commitment to sustainable development, here at Liege Airport we are regularly improving ourenvironmental policy and have just decided to purchase more than 900 LED lights to replace the existing halogen lighting. This is a considerable investment as it amounts to 422,750 Euros.

The �runway� infrastructure lighting represents around 3,400 lights in various areas: runway centreline, taxiways, runway threshold� This lighting helps increase traffic safety by guiding the planes from the ground both during landing and during their various manoeuvres on the runways.

The 900 LED lights have been ordered from the company ADB; a world leader in airport lighting. This investment can be justified as it will save energy, reduce the cost of lighting maintenance and maintain high-level technology in view of thecompetition.

LED lights use less electricity (reduction of 60% in comparison to halogen lighting) and have a considerably longer lifespan than halogen lighting. The return on this investment will be seen in little over 4 years !

For Luc Partoune, Managing Director of Liege Airport, replacing the halogen lighting is a long term investment: �We have already installed LED lighting in one part of the north zone of the airport. This new investment is considerable and will be staggered over the course of several months starting in the autumn with the supply and replacement of hundreds of lights. Liege Airport is already ISO 14001 certified (environmental management) and is developing an ambitious environmental policy. Energy saving is good for the environment and profitable for the company. What more could you ask for !�

Source : Press release Liege Airport - 22 june 2010

Investors appreciate Wallonia

2010-06-01 11:48:28

In the race for foreign investments, Wallonia attracted 67 new projects in 2009, creating 2,038 new jobs compared to the 78 projects in Flanders. These are the findings published by the annual PLI (Plant Location International) study, an IBM division specialised in investment consultancy on a global scale.

It should be noted that this study only lists the investment projects creating new jobs. Consequently, it does not take into account the purely financial investments such as fusions and acquisitions for example, which represent a field of activity in which Belgium has a history of being highly involved.

If Wallonia is able to better emerge from this competition than Flanders, it is thanks to its two main assets. Firstly: the south of the country is home to a large amount of affordable land. Secondly: investment subsidies are much more significant in Wallonia. Is this a consequence of the Marshall Plan? �Not directly� was the response given by Roel Spee, who spoke above all of its European surroundings that enable Wallonia to be more generous than Flanders with regard to candidate investors.

The result : sensational investments were made recently. Among these investments were Hennes & Mauritz in Ghlin (450 jobs), Dow Corning in Feluy (134 jobs) and Baxter in Lessines (120 jobs). On a provincial level, the PLI-IBM study showed a significant level of progression of the number of new projects in the Hainaut region, the Liege province and in the Walloon Brabant province. Anvers and the Flemish Brabant province on the other hand recorded a severe recession.

Link to the study : http://www.ibm.com/gbs/pli

Source : L'Echo � Paul Bombaerts �� 27/05/2010

�172 million in funding available for Trans-European Transport Network infrastructure projects

2010-05-20 16:54:44

The European Commission launched today three new calls for proposals, making an additional �172 million of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T) budget available to finance European transport infrastructure projects. Funding opportunities are to be found under the TEN-T annual programme and multi-annual programme. The Trans-European Transport Network Executive Agency (TEN-T EA), which manages the technical and financial implementation of the TEN-T programme, is responsible, on behalf of the Directorate-General for Mobility and Transport, for the management of the calls for proposals and for the external evaluation of project proposals submitted.

Commission Vice-President Siim Kallas, responsible for transport, said : "The TEN-T programme is today launching calls for proposals making available an additional �172 million of the TEN-T budget to fund key projects of European added value. These include projects in the fields of motorways of the sea and river information services, under the multi-annual programme. In addition, the annual programme has been fine-tuned in 2010 to allow us to prepare for future transport priorities, notably making transport greener, and to increase the participation of private partners in infrastructure projects. This funding complements the �7.16 billion which has already been allocated under the 2007�13 TEN-T programme to around 300 projects covering all transport modes � air, rail, road and maritime/sea, plus logistics and intelligent transport systems � involving all EU Member States."

These calls for proposals have been established under two separate work programmes:

1. The 2010 multi-annual work programme aims to finance the highest priorities of the TEN-T network. This year's multi-annual call focuses on two fields:

Motorways of the sea (TEN-T Priority Project 21), providing viable alternatives for congested roads by shifting freight to sea routes: maximum budget �85 million;

River information services (RIS), involving traffic management infrastructure on the inland waterway network : maximum budget �10 million.

This funding is in addition to the call for proposals in the field of air traffic management systems and functional airspace blocks (ATM/FABs) which closed on 30 April 2010, with a maximum budget of �20 million.

2. The 2010 annual work programme complements the efforts developed under the multi-annual work programme. Unlike in previous years, it is focused on three priorities:

Priority 1 : Promoting the development of an integrated and environmentally friendly transport system (up to �30 million);
Priority 2 : Accelerating/facilitating the implementation of TEN-T projects (studies for all modes, works for mature projects, notably in the rail and inland waterways sectors), as well as projects supporting the Single European Sky policy (up to �40 million);
Priority 3 : Studies to support public�private partnerships (PPPs) (up to �7 million).

The TEN-T Executive Agency will host a TEN-T information day on 31 May and 1 June 2010 in Brussels, to help potential applicants prepare their proposals. On the first day of this event, information will be provided about the calls and the evaluation process. The second day focuses on project finance in general and PPPs in particular, with a view to encouraging potential applicants to consider assessing their projects for PPP feasibility.

The deadline for the submission of proposals is 31 August 2010. Proposals will be evaluated on the basis of their relevance to TEN-T priorities and policy objectives, their maturity, their impact � particularly socio-economic and environmental � and their quality in terms of completeness, clarity, soundness and coherence.

For more information : http://ec.europa.eu/tentea or e-mail: TENT-AGENCY@ec.europa.eu

Transport Pierret at the belgian economic mission to India

2010-03-29 14:23:01

During the Belgian economic mission to India from 20 to 27 March, the company Transport Pierret, a logistics operator in Neufch�teau (Belgium), has signed a collaboration agreement with Vangard Logistics Private Ltd, based in Chennai. The collaboration agreement was signed in the presence of His Majesty Prince Philippe of Belgium on 25 March in Mumbai.

Vangard Logistics Private Ltd is based in Chennai and provides a complete range of logistics services to more than 550 clients in India and throughout the world. In addition, with its offices in Tirrupur, Bangalore, Mumbai and New Delhi, Vangard Logistics has developed a global network of agents.�

Transport Pierret SA is based in Neufch�teau, Southern Belgium, at the heart of Europe. For more than 30 years, Transport Pierret has been developing logistics services for clients active around the world: transport, storage, customs clearance, order preparation, packaging, labelling, distribution,��

Vangard Logistics and Transport Pierret are particularly well positioned in the markets of their respective regions. Together, they will offer their clients complete, reliable and efficient services at all stages of the logistics chain. This agreement will permit them to conquer new markets, as they complement each other so well. The association of these two companies is a guarantee of complete control of all the parameters involved in the logistics chain between India and Europe.

In real terms, the signature of this collaboration agreement will enable the two companies to develop and to manage significant goods flows between India and Europe on behalf of major multinational groups.

Source : Press release -� Transport Pierret - 29th March

Liege Airport : best cargo airport in Belgium

2010-01-22 18:26:33

During 2009, 482,121 tonnes of cargo passed through LIEGE AIRPORT (a decrease of 7% compared to 2008, a record year with 518,650 tons shipped). In these difficult economical times (the airfreight-industry is facing), this resilience is largely due to the recovery recorded by TNT during the fourth quarter, but also the good performances from El Al Cargo,� Ethiopian Airlines and Southern Air, Icelandair, and the arrival of ABX Air and Avient (who based their European hub in Liege). In a market undergoing restructuring and very competitive circumstances, LIEGE AIRPORT can be satisfied with this result. Especially since the first half of 2009 showed losses between 25 and 30%!�

With 482,121 tonnes shipped in 2009, LIEGE AIRPORT is, 20 years after its establishment, the number 1 cargo airport in Belgium, and is ranked 8th in Europe for cargo.

More and more animals and fresh produce

Among the characteristics of LIEGE AIRPORT, we emphasize on developing the transport and appropriate handling/distribution of flowers, Live animals and fresh produce. Therefore, in 2009 LIEGE AIRPORT has hosted 879 horses, transited 1779 tonnes of fish, 637 tonnes of live lobster, and many more perishable goods ... Veterinarians & Phyto-sanitary services provide supervision 24/7 at location and with infrastructure & equipment of the highest quality, which allows customers to achieve efficiency, speed and flexibility.

Passengers

For its part, passenger traffic has experienced a slowdown with 356,782 passengers carried in 2009 (to 400,281 in 2008). For summer 2010, a new destination - Dalaman (Turkey) - just expanded the program for passengers.

Outlook

Prospects for 2010 are encouraging, including, in June, the end of lengthening the main runway (which will reach up to 3,700 meters), the construction of new warehouses of 25,000 sqm and new office buildings. An amount exceeding 30 million euros will be invested, which confirms LIEGE AIRPORT's corporate mission of Regional Development (in 2009, at the� airport's centre for economic development, employment was 2,800 direct jobs and 6,700 indirect jobs).

Source : Press release Li�ge Airport�- 22 january 2010�

Belgium ranks 9 at the World Bank\'s \"Logistics Performance Index\"

2010-01-21 09:22:02

Global Trade Logistics Improving, but more needed to boost recovery

The capacity of countries to efficiently move goods and connect manufacturers and consumers with international markets is improving around the world, but much more progress is needed to spur faster economic growth and help firms benefit from trade recovery, according to a new World Bank Group survey on trade logistics.

Germany is the top performer among the 155 economies ranked in the Logistics Performance Indicators (LPI), which are included in the report Connecting to Compete 2010: Trade Logistics in the Global Economy. The study is based on the most comprehensive world survey of international freight forwarders and express carriers.

�Economic competitiveness is relentlessly driving countries to strengthen performance, and improving trade logistics is a smart way to deliver more efficiencies, lower costs and added economic growth,� said World Bank Group President Robert B. Zoellick, who is visiting Berlin January 13 -15 to discuss global development and economic issues. �Streamlining the connections among markets, manufacturers, farmers and consumers offers tremendous growth and investment opportunities and should be a top focus for developing country growth strategies. As we issue this global report, I'm pleased to be in Germany, the top performer on efficient logistics.�

According to the LPI, high income economies dominate the top logistics rankings, with most of them occupying important places in global and regional supply chains. By contrast, the ten lowest performing countries are almost all from the low and lower income groups.

Although the study shows a substantial �logistics gap� between rich countries and most developing countries, it finds positive trends in some areas essential to logistics performance and trade. Some of them include the modernization of customs, use of information technology, and development of private logistics services.

�Following our first survey in 2007, many developing countries have improved their capacity to connect to international markets, which is a key ingredient for competitiveness and economic growth,� said Otaviano Canuto, World Bank Vice President for Poverty Reduction and Economic Management. �But if developing countries want to come out of the crisis in a stronger and more competitive position, they need to invest in better trade logistics.�

�Countries with better logistics performance can grow faster, become more competitive and increase their level of investment,� said Bernard Hoekman, World Bank Trade Department Director. �Our research shows that increasing logistics performance in low income countries to the middle-income average could boost trade by around 15 per cent and benefit all firms and consumers through lower prices and better quality services.�

The report, headed by World Bank Group economists Jean Francois Arvis and Monica Alina Mustra, notes that among developing economies logistics performance transcends the level of per capita income: Many countries perform better than what their income level would suggest. The ten most significant over-performers include China (27), India (47), Uganda (66), Vietnam (53), Thailand (35), the Philippines (44), and South Africa (28).

Likewise, the countries with significant improvement in performance between the two surveys (the 2007 and 2010 LPI) are often those which implemented comprehensive logistics and trade facilitation reforms earlier, such as Colombia, Brazil, and Tunisia.

In terms of how developing countries are doing per region, South Africa (28) is the top performer from Africa; China (27) from East Asia; Poland (30) from Central and Eastern Europe; Brazil (41) from Latin America; Lebanon (33) from the Middle East; and India (47) from South Asia.

According to the study, logistics performance is heavily influenced by the quality of public sector institutions and the effective coordination of border clearance processes among all border management agencies. In this area, customs performs better than many other agencies, pointing to the need for border management reforms. In low performing countries, on average, half of the containers are physically inspected and one container out of seven at least twice.

Other areas for improvement include better transport policies, increasing competition in trade-related services such as trucking, freight forwarding and railways; and better trade-related infrastructure. For many low-income countries the most binding constraints are often in logistics services and international transit systems. Given they perform better on many other indicators, improving trade infrastructure is often reported to be a priority for middle-income countries.

The World Bank Group has a number of projects designed to improve trade logistics in developing countries. The US$250 million East Africa Trade and Transport Facilitation Project improved the corridor infrastructure and upgraded the main border crossing between Uganda and Kenya at Malaba, reducing border crossing times from three days to three hours. In Tunisia, a US$250 million operation is improving competitiveness by reducing trade costs and streamlining border clearance procedures. And in Afghanistan, the Bank is providing funding for a US$31.2 million project to modernize and computerize four major border crossings, increasing customs revenues from US$50 million when the project started in 2004 to over US$399 million in 2008.

In addition, the Bank is working with IBM, Microsoft and the Global Express Association as part of a public-private partnership on �Aid for Trade Facilitation.� The objective is to develop pilot projects in developing countries that apply innovative IT solutions to streamline border procedures.

Source : World Bank - 15 January 2010

To download the full report, CLICK HERE

Wallonia is the first logistic region in Europe !

2009-12-09 12:51:33

Wallonia is the first logistic region in Europe. This is the conclusion of�a survey lead by Cushman & Wakefield and published today by�Logistics in Wallonia en�AWEX. This survey has been presented on the 10th of december during a press conference by Jean-Claude Marcourt, Vice-Pr�sident of the Walloon Region en�Minister of Economy, SMEs, Foreign Trade and New Technologies.��

The report makes a ranking of top locations for distribution and logistics in Europe, based upon macro-economic parameters. This is done by using a ranked-matrix method for 61 European regions and for the optimal location of a European Distribution Centre (EDC, not a regional logistics centre).

As in previous reports, published in 2004 and 2006 by the Flanders Institute for Logistics (VIL), several Belgian provinces come in the top of this ranking. Li�ge comes out as the number 1 location, closely followed by Limburg (B), Hainaut, and Nord-Pas-de-Calais. The main reasons for this top-ranking are :

excellent access to the main European markets ( the core West-German markets like the Ruhrgebiet,� the core Benelux markets like Randstad and the Antwerp/Brussels area , Paris/Ile-de-France and the greater London area)
a central geographic location that is optimal to cover a wide range of European markets
top transport infrastructure and volume, close to main ports or with good multimodal links to these ports
low costs for land, warehouses and labour
labour force that is available, highly productive, skilled for supply chain jobs and with a good language knowledge

The top-15 consists of regions from Belgium, Northern France (Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Alsace) and Western Germany (D�sseldorf, Koblenz, K�ln and Arnsberg).

Regions from the Netherlands are, given their history as important logistics locations,�often perceived as top regions for distribution; in this macro-economic ranking they score relatively average (Limburg (NL)/ Venlo comes on 23rd place, Noord-Brabant/Eindhoven 31st place, Zuid-Holland/ Rotterdam 37th place). The main reasons for this relatively low score of the Dutch regions are :

relatively high costs for land and warehouses, combined with a severe urban planning system that makes it difficult to guarantee the required space for future logistics property development
road congestion problems, especially in the Randstad areas
labourforce availability has proven to be relatively limited in periods of strong economic activity

The matrix used in this study is based upon the quantifiable variables that play a role in the decision to locate an EDC; the relative weight of the variables in the matrix is based upon surveys amongst decision makers, like the European Cities Monitor survey that Cushman & Wakefield publishes on a yearly basis.

Over the years these weights have shifted a little: the relative importance of Labour (Available Labourforce / Labour productivity) was given more weight (9%) than in the 2004 and 2006 studies, especially because available labourforce was a growing problem over 2007 and 2008 :

Ranking Nuts - 2 regions 2009	Costs	Transport System	Accessibility	Supply	Labour	Know-How	SCORE	Ranking 2009
Weight %	21%	29%	29%	9%	9%	3%	Total
*LIEGE*	*4,1*	*1,5*	*1,0*	*2,4*	*2,6*	*2,5*	*2,1*	1
LIMBURG-B (Genk-Hasselt)	3,6	2,0	1,2	1,2	2,9	1,7	2,1	2
*HAINAUT (Charleroi)*	*3,2*	*2,2*	*1,7*	*1,0*	*2,1*	*3,3*	*2,2*	3
NORD-PAS-DE-CALAIS (Lille)	2,8	2,5	3,0	2,1	2,5	3,8	2,7	4
*NAMUR*	*3,7*	*2,4*	*2,0*	*4,3*	*2,1*	*3,5*	*2,7*	5
*LUXEMBOURG - B (Arlon)*	*3,3*	*3,4*	*1,5*	*2,3*	*3,6*	*4,0*	*2,7*	6
ALSACE (Strasbourg)	3,7	2,8	2,1	2,8	3,8	3,8	2,9	7
OOST-VLAANDEREN (Gent)	5,8	2,0	2,0	2,5	3,2	2,0	2,9	8
ANTWERPEN	7,4	1,5	2,0	2,4	2,0	1,0	3,0	9
ARNSBERG	4,7	3,6	1,5	2,0	4,0	3,3	3,1	10
K�LN	8,6	1,8	0,7	3,0	3,4	2,5	3,1	11
KOBLENZ	6,0	3,1	1,0	2,8	4,5	3,0	3,2	12
�
MAZOWIECKIE (Warszawa)	4,7	5,2	8,2	1,8	4,5	6,0	5,6	53
TIROL (Innsbruck)	9,0	4,6	5,1	5,0	4,4	4,3	5,7	54
GREATER LONDON	12,1	2,6	3,9	6,0	7,6	2,0	5,7	55
SW SCOTLAND (Glasgow)	8,8	4,1	7,1	3,5	4,5	3,0	5,9	56
SYDSVERIGE (Malm�/�resund)	9,0	4,8	6,8	4,0	4,3	3,0	6,1	57
VASTSVERIGE (G�teborg)	8,4	5,5	7,3	4,3	4,1	3,0	6,3	58
CATALUNA (Barcelona)	10,4	3,9	7,8	4,6	3,2	4,0	6,4	59
COM. DE MADRID	10,7	4,8	10,0	3,8	2,6	5,0	7,3	60
LISBOA VALE DO TEJO	6,8	4,9	12,0	3,5	5,0	5,5	7,3	61
median score	6,7	3,3	3,0	2,8	3,9	3,0	4,1

For a location decision, the actual situation is important, but it is even more important to know what the future will bring in terms of infrastructure development, land supply, expected warehouse rent evolution etc.� That is why a forecast of the matrix data was developed for the time horizon of 2020. According to this forecast Li�ge will not be able to hold its nr 1 position : it is extremely well located, but the limited availability of land give this region a slight disadvantage versus Hainaut who will be nr1 in our view.

This reflects the growing importance of good transport infrastructure towards markets south of the actual core European logistics regions; the Seine-Nord Europe canal junction that will upgrade the inland waterway between the Paris region and the North of France and Belgium also increases the score of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Hainaut.The gradual shift of the centre of gravity of the European markets towards central Europe will result in a rise of German regions like K�ln and D�sseldorf; the good geographical position towards main German and central-European markets will keep Limburg (B) and Li�ge in a strong 2 and 3 position.

Forecast 2020 NUTS - 2 regions	Costs	Transport system	Accessibility	Supply	Labour	Know-How	SCORE	Forecasted Ranking 2020
Weight %	19%	27%	27%	8%	15%	3%	Total
*HAINAUT (Charleroi)*	*5,9*	*2,4*	*1,8*	*1,0*	*2,3*	*3,0*	*2,8*	1
LIMBURG - B (Genk-Hasselt)	5,9	2,2	1,7	1,3	3,3	1,7	2,9	2
*LIEGE*	*6,7*	*1,9*	*1,2*	*2,3*	*3,3*	*2,5*	*2,9*	3
NORD-PAS-DE-CALAIS	6,6	2,3	2,5	1,3	2,2	3,5	3,1	4
D�SSELDORF	9,3	1,8	0,9	3,3	2,3	2,5	3,2	5
K�LN	10,3	1,7	0,8	3,3	2,3	2,5	3,3	6
ALSACE (Strasbourg)	6,1	2,8	2,1	2,0	4,3	3,5	3,4	7
ARNSBERG	7,3	3,5	1,4	2,0	3,0	3,3	3,5	8
VLAAMS BRABANT (Vilvoorde)	10,1	2,1	1,5	2,8	1,7	1,8	3,5	9
SAARLAND	6,7	3,6	2,1	1,7	2,8	3,3	3,5	10

To obtain this survey : DOWNLOAD

Marco Polo: Fresh air for European freight transport

2009-10-15 11:33:48

The European Commission has adopted new rules to broaden the scope of its successful Marco Polo programme, which has been supporting sustainable transport projects since 2003. The programme gives financial support to the transport industry in order to reduce road freight on our congested roads or to shift it to other more sustainable transport modes, like shipping, rail or inland waterways. The conditions for participation have been improved to further increase its appeal to the industry, will apply to the next call for proposals due for the beginning of next year.

Vice-President Antonio Tajani, responsible for transport, commented: "The Marco Polo programme plays a vital role in getting Europe moving. We want to build on that success by making it easier for companies to participate in this process. The rules adopted today can help them change towards sustainable transport services. "

The amendments include a general reduction of the minimum thresholds for eligible projects, with a special reduced threshold for projects aiming to shift road freight to inland waterways. These changes will facilitate access to projects presented by smaller companies in general and inland waterways operators in particular. In addition it will be easier for these companies to apply for funding since the existence of a consortium for the application is no longer required.

The period going from the day of application to the signature of the grant agreements has also been shortened, giving beneficiaries quicker feedback from the Commission.

Finally, apart from other simplification measures, flexibility is added to the deadlines for completion of projects objectives and modal shift is extended to empty containers and transport vehicles if effectively taken out of the roads.

The projects supported by the first Marco Polo programme from 2003 until 2006 have already resulted in taking 31 billion tonne-kilometres from our roads, the equivalent of nearly 1.5 million trucks travelling from Paris to Berlin. Although this was already a substantial help to reduce congestion on the European roads, the second Marco Polo programme has seen its budget increase fourfold to �450 million for the period 2007/2013. With this budget the current objective of the programme is to shift or avoid a substantial part of the forecasted increase in international road transport, estimated in 20 billion tonne-kilometres per year.

Source : Press Release Europa - 9 octobre 2009

Commission clears the way for a single European Road Toll Service

2009-10-09 12:19:16

The European Commission today adopted a decision setting out the essential technical specifications and requirements needed to launch a European Electronic Toll Service (EETS) which will enable road users to easily pay tolls throughout the whole European Union (EU) thanks to one subscription contract with one service provider and one single on-board unit. EETS will be available on all infrastructures in the entire Community such as motorways, tunnels and bridges where toll can be paid using on-board equipment. EETS will eventually limit cash transactions at toll stations, thereby improving traffic flow and reducing congestion.

European Commission Vice-President Antonio Tajani, in charge of Transport, considers this decision to be the most important improvement for drivers since the abolition of border controls, stating that "the European Electronic Toll Service will enable road users to easily pay tolls throughout the whole European Union thanks to one subscription contract with one service provider and one single on-board unit".

Electronic toll systems were introduced in several European countries in the early 1990s. Most systems operate with an on-board unit communicating the vehicle's characteristics to the road operators in view to determining the toll, for instance based on the vehicle's weight and size.

However, the various national and local electronic road toll systems are generally incompatible and can only communicate with their respective on-board units. These non-interoperable road toll systems especially hinder international road transport. For example, to travel from Portugal to Denmark five or more on-board units might be needed on the vehicle's dashboard, each unit being covered by a particular contract for a particular road operator. For the transporter this entails time-consuming paperwork and costly administrative burden in reconciling travel data, received invoices, contracts clauses and payment orders.

The Commission Decision adopted today also lays down the rights and obligations of toll chargers, service providers, and users. Users will be able to subscribe to the service provider of their choice. Toll chargers will communicate the tolls due to the service providers, who will eventually invoice the users. Tolls paid via EETS may not exceed the corresponding national or local tolls.

EETS will be available within three years for all road vehicles above 3.5 tonnes or allowed to carry more than nine passengers, including the driver. It will be available for all other vehicles within five years.

Source : Presse Release Europa - 6th October 2009

Avient chooses Liege as its European hub

2009-09-10 14:09:22

Avient has decided to move its European hub from Vatry (France) to Liege Airport. Avient is an English airline that is active mainly in Africa but also in the Middle-East and in Asia. It carried 44,000 tonnes of freight in 2008, mainly perishable goods (flowers, food, fish, etc.).

"This relocation presents us with numerous opportunities for Avient's future development, adding considerable advantages to our operational service capacities", explains Andrew Smith, Avient's Managing Director. "Liege Airport already accommodates a number of freight operators and makes an attractive platform with infrastructure designed to encourage the development of air companies", adds Mr. Andrew Smith.

The transfer of Avient's operations from Vatry to Liege went very smoothly thanks to Liege Aiport's operational flexibility and that of AviaPartner Cargofor the handling. The company will operate two full warehouses totalling 12,500 m� and the best equipment possible for handling perishable products. In addition to using Aviapartner Cargo Liege's expertise, Avient will have its own offices and its freight team.

For Jos� Happart, President of Liege Airport, Avient's choice confirms the airport's strategy: "It's obviously excellent news for our airport platform.Avient will keep 3 planes and bring a hundred direct jobs to the site. Th equality of the services offered by Liege Airport (handling, maintenance,customs, transport, etc.) is being increasingly recognized."

The first Avient plane will land on Liege Airport's runway this Thursday, the 10th September at 09.45. 6 weekly flights are scheduled and charter flights will be arranged according to the demand. Three DC10-30Fs will be used for the daily rotation.

For Liege Airport, these operations represent a growth in traffic of about 50,000 tonnes per year and confirm Liege Airport's specialization in the perishable goods sector. This sector represents approximately 25 % of the cargo traffic that passes through Liege Airport.

Contact Press: Val�rie Hauglustaine, Press Attach� : +32 4 234 85 76 � vha@liegeairport.com

Source : Press Release - Liege airpor -�09 September 2009

Opening DGM office in Liege

2009-08-03 15:59:11

The transport of dangerous goods requires a very high safety factor along with the observation of constantly changing regulations. Dangerous Goods Management (DGM Belux S.A.) is your specialist in the field of carriage of dangerous goods by road/railway, by sea or by air.

Our specially trained staff is very well acquainted with the constantly changing regulations along with the required standards regarding the carriage of dangerous goods.�

DGM is represented in more than 20 countries by more than 30 offices. Consignors, airlines and carriers make use of our services in the form of new packaging, issue of transport documents and provision of a safety adviser.�

From now on you can also find DGM in Liege !

To download the file containing more information about�their services and the right address, e-mail and phone number to reach DGM please click here.

Dutch Air Cargo and MiniLiner starting in-night service between Liege Airport and Spain

2009-06-18 21:34:53

Dutch Air Cargo will set up a new international air connection from Liege-Airport to Madrid in Spain, operated by MiniLiner, with a Fokker 27 which has a payload of 6.0 tons, in co-operation with various cargo companies in the Benelux. This joint venture is a business partnership between DAC & MINILINER.

The contracts between DAC and Cargo companies have been officially signed and this new strategic cooperation between DAC and partners will offer premium and in-night services through the Spanish domestic networks and parts of Portugal which will start from June 3rd 2009.

Dutch Air Cargo is active within the niche market, especially within the in-night market, but also offering other Cargo services. This in-night service is quite unique. Within this network goods can be delivered in a very fast manner Same Day or Next Day. Door-to-door is also offered from Madrid throughout Spain enabling deliveries before 8.30h and even with a connection to parts of Portugal with deliveries possible before 11.00h.

Further information can be found on the website (www.dutchaircargo.eu).

With this cooperation it is the ambition to expand the in-night network and station a second Fokker 27-50 at Liege-Airport, or Germany for a new destination later this year. These new destinations will be part of and linking with the current domestic lines.

Customers can offer the goods or have them picked up by a courier for this service.

For more information :
E-mail: info@dutchaircargo.eu - Telephone. +31(0)6 - 460.32.910

Cargo B relocates its activities to Liege Airport

2009-05-16 20:57:41

Cargo B, the Belgian all cargo carrier that started operations in October 2007, has decided to relocate its hub to Liege Airport (mid 2009) to further develop its operations as well as its new routes to / from Africa. Cargo B today operates 3 weekly flights to / from South America (Sao Paolo-Viracopos, Bogota, Quito and Caracas).

At the end of 2008, its fleet, initially 2 Boeing 747-200Fs, has been replaced by a new Boeing 747-400F, having a larger capacity of 120 tonnes, and also more efficient in terms of fuel burn, operational cost and noise.

The delivery of a 2nd 747-400 freighter and the decision to relocate the activities to Liege Airport mean that Cargo B will operate its present South American and future Africa routes from Liege. Cargo B will start as from 17 May 3 weekly flights to Africa to destinations as Johannesburg, Libreville, N'Djamena, Kinshasa and Nairobi.

All destinations will be operated from Liege Airport after the move. The delivery of the new 747-400 freighter took place on May 11th 2009 from the Boeing factory in Seattle arriving at Liege Airport this 12th of May in the afternoon.

The majority of Cargo B's operations will take place during the day, and its flights will return from these two continents to Liege Airport predominantly with perishable products. This new activity at Liege Airport will again generate employment and create about 30 direct jobs.

� The economical and positive repercussions are most important for the Region, since in addition to these 30 direct employments, another 75 indirect jobs will be created �, adds Luc Partoune, General Manager of Liege Airport.

� The operational flexibility at Liege Airport, the flexibility of its Customs formalities and of the Phyto-sanitary procedures, as well as the specialisation of its handling companies has been a decisive factor for Cargo B Airlines to relocate its activities at Liege Airport �,explains Eric Gysen, Cargo Sales Manager of Liege Airport.

� The possibility to effectively operate 24 hours per day is essential to optimize the utilisation of our new B747-400F aircraft �, added Robert Kuijpers, President & CEO of Cargo B. For Liege Airport, these operations represent an increase of its traffic by 60.000 tonnes a year, and reinforces its specialization in the logistics of perishable products.

Commission hearing to discuss ways to help road hauliers affected by crisis

2009-05-08 11:28:18

Measures to help road haulage companies survive the economic crisis were discussed at a stakeholder hearing in Brussels organised by the European Commission. The hearing has attracted about 100 representatives from European road haulage associations, the Commission, the European Parliament and the European Investment Bank with the aim to collect first-hand information from stakeholders on the effects of the recession and to identify ways forward.

Commission Vice-President Antonio Tajani, in charge of transport policy, said: "The road transport sector is the most important pillar for the exchange of goods in the internal market. This stakeholder meeting helps all actors better understand how serious the consequences of the economic downturn on road transport undertakings are. At the same time it is clear that short term measures should not be taken at the expense of market integration and the objective of a sustainable transport system. The crisis must be used as an opportunity to modernise the transport sector."

The participants reviewed the impact of the crisis, its effects in terms of employment, the role of transport innovation, and future business and policy perspectives. The speakers included amongst others Mathieu Grosch and Bogusław Liberadzki, members of the European Parliament, Matthias Ruete Director General of Transport at the European Commission, Eduardo Chagas Secretary General of the European Federation of Transport Workers, Paolo Ugg�, former Transport Secretary of State in Italy and President of Italian association Conftrasporto as well as Pere Padrosa, President of the Goods Transport Council of the International Road Union.

The event

The stakeholder hearing was held in Brussels on 20 April 2009.

To find out more :

http://ec.europa.eu/transport/road/events/2009_04_20_hearing_road_haulage_en.htm

http://ec.europa.eu/transport/road/index_en.htm

Mondia Charleroi and Mondia Logistics rebrand to NYK Logistics (Charleroi) S.A.

2009-04-03 10:58:06

As of April 1st the activities of Mondia Logistics S.A. will be integrated into the activities of its sister company Mondia Charleroi S.A. and the new structure will be renamed into NYK Logistics (Charleroi) S.A.

After the acquisition by NYK Logistics in 2005, the two Belgian Mondia entities continued to function as two separate fiscal entities but were managed by a combined management team. Both companies now will act as one single fiscal entity that will be renamed into NYK Logistics (Charleroi) S.A.

Although operating under a different name, all customers can continue to rely on the high service levels and support as they were used to in the past. The rebranding into a NYK Logistics entity emphasizes the adherence of the companies to NYK Logistics North Continent, part of NYK Group Europe, Logistics Division.

On top of the local and personalised approach that characterised the companies so far, NYK Logistics (Charleroi) S.A. can offer the global services covering the entire supply chain, as only can be done by a worldwide logistics player.

As part of the Japanese NYK Group, NYK Logistics offers worldwide, integrated supply chain solutions. Within Belgium the company has 6 high quality warehouses on 5 strategic locations. Not only storage but also product adaptations are part of the services NYK can offer to its customers. Final distribution of the goods can also be managed by NYK via its extensive transportation network. Current customer portfolio encloses many renowned companies in the field of healthcare, consumer electronics and automotive.�

For more information :
Hans Snellings
Senior General Manager NYK Logistics (Charleroi) S.A.
Mail : hans.snellings@be.nyklogistics.com�- Tel: +32 (0)71 46 85 85

European Commission authorises a Belgian aid scheme for combined road/rail transport

2009-03-16 10:03:48

The Belgian aid scheme approved today will run for four years, with a budget of �25 million per year. It is designed to encourage the development of co-modal transport, in particular by rail.

The scheme is an extension of an earlier scheme authorised by the Commission in 2005.

It will benefit combined goods transport operators using the rail mode. The level of the aid has been set to compensate operators for the cost of using combined transport infrastructure which road transport does not have to bear � in particular the cost of transhipment � and to offset part of the difference between external road and rail costs.

The subsidy is to be granted where the rail component of the combined transport covers a distance of 51 kilometres or more.

This new scheme has a new feature not provided for in the previous scheme, i.e. aid for launching new combined international transport services. Combined transport operators are also required to pass on the subsidy they receive to their clients.

The Commission takes the view that the Belgian aid scheme complies with the competition rules[1] and contributes to the common transport policy goal of promoting the rail aspect of combined goods transport.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[1] On the basis of Article 3(1)(b) of Regulation (EEC) No 1107/70 on aid for the coordination of transport.

Source : Presse Release Europa - 10th march 2009

Marco Polo: third call for proposals to fight road congestion and improve performance of freight transport

2009-02-13 16:30:41

The European Commission has today published the third call for proposals for the creation and update of freight transport services under the second Marco Polo programme. Successful projects should fight congestion on European roads and improve the environmental performance of the freight transport system, two main objectives of the EU transport policy. Companies across the European Union and beyond are invited to submit proposals.

The general aim of the Marco Polo programme is to help companies introduce services that shift freight off the road and on to short-sea shipping, rail and inland waterways. This support is available during the high-risk start-up phase of the projects.

The top-ranked projects in the competitive evaluation process will be offered grant contracts of up to six years. However, only projects capable of demonstrating sustainable non-road freight transport services � i.e. projects that can survive on the market even after they cease receiving EU financial support � have a chance for a grant.

The call is open to applications for five types of actions :

- Modal shift actions which will shift freight from the road to short sea shipping, rail, inland waterways or a combination of modes of transport;
- Highly innovative catalyst actions which are aimed at overcoming structural barriers in the freight transport market in the European Union, such as low-speed of freight trains or technical interoperability problems between transport modes;
- Common learning actions which will improve cooperation and optimise working methods and procedures between actors in the freight transport chain.
- Motorways of the Sea actions which shift freight from road to short sea shipping or a combination of short sea shipping and other modes of transport, offering a very large-volume, high-frequency intermodal maritime transport service.
- Traffic avoidance actions which integrate transport into production logistics in order to reduce freight transport demand by road.

The budget for the 2009 call has been increased to �62 million compared to �60 in 2008. In parallel, the funding intensity has been raised from �1 to �2 per 500 tonne-kilometres shifted off the roads.

The full call text including information on how to apply for a grant is available on the Marco Polo website : http://ec.europa.eu/transport/marcopolo/calls/2009_en.htm

Trans-European transport networks: towards a new policy for meeting future challenges

2009-02-09 09:28:24

The European Commission adopted today a Green Paper setting out the future challenges of its policy for a trans-European transport network (TEN-T). TEN-T policy needs to be realigned to contribute more effectively to objectives aimed at combating climate change and to support Europe's increasing international role through better infrastructure connections with its neighbours and the wider world. Importantly TEN-T policy also needs to be adapted to strengthen its supporting role for economic and social development within the framework of the Lisbon strategy.

The integration of all transport modes and intelligent transport systems can be strengthened if TEN-T policy provided a basis guaranteeing efficient and safe transport services reflecting the future demands of citizens and economic operators. In the light of these challenges and lessons drawn from previous TEN-T policy implementation, the Commission sets out future objectives and proposes three options for TEN-T development, while stressing the need for coherence between planning ambitions and instruments for their implementation.

"We have to develop forward-looking responses to tomorrow's needs for transport infrastructure in Europe.� While building on 15 years of experience, we need to harness new ideas to redirect and streamline the policy approach and � more importantly � the commitment to ensure its full implementation�, said Vice-President Antonio Tajani in charge of Transport.

A better integrated trans-European transport network is the basis for efficient, safe, secure and high quality freight and passenger transport. It is crucial for contributing to common European objectives, such us the achievement of climate change objectives, providing better connections between Europe, its neighbours and the wider world and supporting economic and social development in the framework of the Lisbon strategy.

Combining all transport modes, making best possible use of fully interoperable intelligent transport systems and assimilating new transport and energy technologies are at the heart of a future-oriented network integration. These three elements support the further development of co-modal transport services for freight and passengers. In the freight sector, such a network development approach is for example vital for the expansion of logistics services which rely on the principle that each transport mode is used according to its respective advantages within the transport chain, while enhancing the efficiency of overall operations both from an economic and environmental perspective.

To support co-modal transport services for freight, infrastructure development within the framework of the future TEN-T policy needs to give particular attention to :
- the appropriate development of ports' infrastructure and more efficient hinterland connections to respond to the increasing role of maritime transport;
- the integration of fully interoperable and commercially viable rail freight corridors and of Green Corridors;
- the removal of bottlenecks on major transport axes;
- inter-modal connections, freight handling in urban areas and the potential of air freight transport;
- the application of intelligent transport systems for all transport modes and new pricing systems, stimulating efficient infrastructure use.

In parallel, necessary infrastructure for co-modal services for passenger transport (such as connections between air and rail services or integrated ticketing) need to be developed too.

TEN-T policy will build on what has been achieved before but will also look ahead to exploit new opportunities. A further key component to the successful delivery of TEN-T policy is the range of the instruments available to support its implementation. In this regard the Green Paper highlights a number of possibilities both financial and non financial, stressing the need to establish a good match between the policy ambitions and the availability of suitable instruments.

The Commission invites Member States' governments and the broad range of stakeholders � infrastructure managers and users, researches and investors, economic operators and NGOs, regional and local authorities and interested citizens � to express their views on three proposed options for TEN-T development and on the wider policy objectives. The Parliament is also preparing an own initiative report on the future of the trans-European transport network which is foreseen to be adopted by the plenary in April 2009.

Towards a European maritime transport area without barriers

2009-01-23 16:48:30

Today the European Commission adopted an action plan aimed at creating a maritime transport area without borders in Europe. This plan includes several legislative measures, including a proposal aimed at simplifying administrative formalities based on Community regulations and recommendations to Member States for reducing the administrative burdens imposed on shipping companies.

"By making maritime transport more attractive and creating new openings for it, the proposed measures will lead to a more balanced use of transport modes, based on their own merits rather than on historically different administrative formalities; this will be beneficial for the environment and for the economy," emphasised European Commission Vice-President Antonio Tajani. "The Commission considers that the necessary conditions for setting up a barrier-free maritime transport area are now in place and that relevant measures may be introduced in a staggered fashion between 2010 and 2013."

The creation of a barrier-free maritime transport area in Europe should curb the demand for road haulage, reduce freight forwarding costs, while preserving expertise and promoting jobs in the lines of work necessary for the operation of maritime transport.

The Commission points to several measures which should be put in place by the Member States. The various port inspection bodies that monitor compliance with customs, tax and health regulations and the conformance of plant and animal products often act without coordination, thus generating costs and delays which could easily be reduced. The Commission calls on the Member States to review and simplify their practices in these areas, which often come under the responsibility of local authorities.

More important, however, are the legislative measures, which are aimed at simplifying customs procedures and other reporting formalities. A Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on reporting formalities for ships arriving in and departing from Community ports is annexed to the communication. Measures simplifying customs procedures will be adopted at the beginning of 2009 and guidelines aimed at accelerating plant and animal checks will be published in 2009. Port administrations may still carry out spot checks.

The action plan includes measures that are ongoing under the Modernised Customs Code, such as simplifying the formalities for Community shipping routes which include a stop in a neighbouring country, or measures that will be proposed at a later stage, along with the Member States' recommendations, mainly in the aim of coordinating, where local conditions allow, inspections conducted by the various administrative services in the ports or to award pilot exemption certificates ('PECs' ) to experienced captains.

The reduced costs and delays resulting from this administrative streamlining will benefit the entire economy and the end consumers. The proposed measures should help offset the downturn in the sector that may be feared on account of the financial crisis, designed as they are to enhance its competitiveness in relation to other modes of transport.

The creation of the single market in 1993 has helped streamline the administrative formalities for land-based transport to a great extent. Maritime transport, however, remains subject to complicated administrative procedures, even if a vessel is travelling between two EU ports (intra-Community maritime transport).

Facilities have certainly been put into place, but administrative complexity remains the norm and discourages numerous users from using maritime transport.

Yet, maritime transport offers numerous advantages. It is a viable solution for transporting a large proportion of the goods traded within the European Union, which has 100 000 km of coastline and 1 200 trading ports, and whose maritime tradition has marked its history from the very beginning.

A summary of replies to the preliminary public consultation is available online:

http://ec.europa.eu/transport/maritime/consultations/2007_12_20_barriers_en.htm

Source : Press release Europa�- 21st January 2009