DHL Global Forwarding and Rail Cargo Group, the freight division of the Austrian Federal Railways, have signed a memorandum of understanding to develop an intermodal rail network between China and Austria.
According to DHL, the partnership began with the launch of a container rail service from Chengdu’s Qingbaijiang station to the Vienna South Freight Centre, a route connecting Chengdu to Vienna in 15 days, spanning 9,800km and crossing China, Kazakhstan, Russia, Ukraine, Slovakia and Austria.
“Trade growth between China and Austria shows no signs of slowing down, and we are delighted to partner with RCG to further streamline freight connections between both countries,” said Steve Huang, CEO of DHL Global Forwarding Greater China. “This key partnership comes in the wake of Austria’s economy minister having signed 30 business deals worth US$1.9 billion with Chinese companies last month. The MoU combines RCG’s deep expertise in regional rail infrastructure with DHL’s end-to-end forwarding capabilities and one of the world’s broadest multimodal networks, giving customers in Europe and China a potent new alternative to tap into the opportunities heralded by the Belt and Road.”
As part of the MoU, DHL Global Forwarding and RCG will work together to boost rail freight capacity and jointly develop alternative routes between China and Europe, building on RCG’s infrastructure and expertise on the trans-Kazakh routes of the Silk Road Economic Belt. DHL Global Forwarding will also provide door-to-door services including pre- and on-carriage trucking between Qingbaijiang and other parts of China, and between Vienna South Freight Centre, other European rail stations and customers’ final delivery destinations.
“This direct connection offers fast, efficient and sustainable multimodal capacity supporting high-growth sectors that will bring immense benefits to both countries and continents,” said Thomas Kargl, member of the board of directors at Rail Cargo Group. “The Chinese market holds enormous growth potential for Europe, and we intend for this route to support trade volumes that grew nearly 16% last year – and show no sign of slowing or decreasing in the future. DHL’s world-class forwarding services, tailored to a broad range of freight types and requirements, will draw out the best in our rail infrastructure connecting Austria to China and the world.”
The new route will support growth in high-value exports between China and Austria such as biomedicine, automotive equipment, intelligent manufacturing and e-commerce goods. Rail containers on DHL’s multimodal network come with a range of options including remotely monitored temperature control, real-time tracking, fully managed customs clearance and consolidation, and enhanced security.
“Since 2008, we have been investing in local partnerships and infrastructure to make seamless Belt and Road freight connectivity a reality,” said Huang. “The Chengdu-Vienna direct connection, made possible by our partnership with RCG and leveraging on their European expertise, will bring a new degree of volume and flexibility to our multimodal network that our customers in China and Europe enjoy, in a way that connects people and businesses securely and reliably to overseas opportunities for growth.”
