PKP CARGO has begun the expansion of its container terminal in Poznań Franowo. Once the work is completed, its capacity will increase by nearly 40 percent. Due to high interest in the facility, the decision to expand was made just one year after it was put into operation. The investment is scheduled for completion in December 2015. In the future, the terminal will be part of the Logistics Center in Poznań, providing comprehensive logistics services.
As a result of the expansion, the terminal in Poznań Franowo will gain a new maneuvering and storage yard with an area of 8,200 square meters. This will increase the storage capacity of the Franowo facility from the current 1,280 TEU to nearly 1,800 TEU.
– Container transport stands out compared to other groups of goods transported by rail. In the first quarter of 2015, intermodal rail transport in Poland grew at a double-digit rate. We expect this to be a long-term trend. Hence our investments in this market segment. The terminal in Franowo is on the list of the most important ones – says Jacek Neska, member of the PKP CARGO Management Board for Commercial Affairs.
To improve the functionality of the terminal in Poznań Franowo, the investment will also include the reconstruction and modernization of the access road system. This will make it easier for trucks that collect some of the containers brought to Franowo to access the site. The general contractor for the project will be Skanska.
The expansion will be 50 percent co-financed by EU funds. The total net value of the investment is PLN 6.8 million. The new elements of the Poznań PKP CARGO terminal will be put into operation in December 2015.
– The expansion of the Poznań terminal is another pro-development investment by the PKP CARGO Group. It is worth emphasizing that we will cover half of the expenditures with EU funds, which increases the attractiveness of this investment from the investor’s point of view – says Łukasz Hadyś, member of the PKP CARGO Management Board for Finance.
The terminal in Franowo is one of the key investments for PKP CARGO. It is characterized by its strategic location – two main European transport corridors intersect near Poznań. For this reason, containers transported along the East-West and North-South axes of Europe are transshipped in Franowo. A large part of the handled transport consists of connections with the Tri-City ports. An operator train runs from the Franowo terminal to the port of Gdańsk five times a week according to a fixed schedule.
PKP CARGO is a leader in intermodal transport, with a 50 percent market share. Container transport is the most promising segment of the rail transport market. PKP CARGO is investing in both transshipment infrastructure for intermodal transport and rolling stock. In recent months, the company has received modern intermodal platforms adapted for container transport and has announced a tender for the purchase of multi-system locomotives to handle cross-border connections.
PKP CARGO is the largest rail freight carrier in Poland, with a market share exceeding 47 percent in terms of mass and 57 percent in terms of transport performance (2014). In addition to rail freight transport, the PKP CARGO Group is also a freight forwarder and an operator of terminals and sidings. It also deals with the repair and maintenance of rolling stock.