The Swiss-based shipping company Sallaum Lines is investing in its fleet and terminal business to prepare for the expected growth in trade with Chinese vehicles.
“Unbalanced trade flows, capacity bottlenecks at sea and on land as well as labour shortages have put Europe’s most efficient ports and shipping companies for the handling of finished vehicles to the test, as has a new wave of vehicle imports from China and its OEMs,” says the shipping company.
The company is now reacting. Sallaum wants to “meet the evolving market trends” and benefit from the growing importance of Chinese OEMs. To this end, a number of measures have been taken. For example, orders have already been placed for new builds for the fiercely contested carrier market: The company expects six additional PCTC (Pure Car and Truck Carrier) vessels in the coming years.
The newbuilding program is divided into two parts: Fujian Mawei Shipbuilding is building two vessels based on an SDARI design, while China Merchants Jinling Shipyard (Nanjing) is building four units based on a Deltamarin concept. Each ship has a capacity of 7,400 to 7,500 Car Equivalent Units (CEU). With 13 vehicle decks, a length of 199.9 metres, a width of 37.70 metres and a draught of 10.20 metres, the ships will have a dual-fuel LNG design developed by Deltamarin, including shore power connection.
“This expansion will strengthen the infrastructure to be able to handle fluctuating volumes efficiently and flexibly,” says Sallaum Lines. The use of dual-fuel LNG technology is expected to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 25%.
But there is also movement on land for the Swiss company: among other things, a Sallum office has been opened in China to further strengthen relationships with Chinese OEMs and facilitate a smoother process. The aim is to promote strong partnerships and expand its own business activities on the Chinese market. The aim is to be able to adapt quickly to market requirements and offer customised logistics solutions.
Sallaum Lines wants to benefit from the growth of the Chinese automotive industry (© Sallaum Lines)
Sallaum Lines invests in Antwerp-Bruges
At the same time, Sallaum Terminal, the central hub of Sallaum Lines’ shipping activities in Europe, has presented an “extensive investment initiative” to improve and expand its activities in the port of Antwerp-Bruges, particularly in port 332.
Sallaum Lines is currently mainly active in RoRo, breakbulk and project cargo shipping. Its main focus is on the terminal in the Belgian hub of Antwerp as well as Africa and North America. The fleet list currently comprises eight ships.
The background to the measure is “the lack of space that many European terminals are currently facing”.
An essential part of this plan is the construction of a multi-storey parking garage with an area of 47,000 m². Completion of the first phase of the multi-storey car park project will increase the terminal’s capacity to 15,000 units. Once the second phase of the project is completed, the terminal’s capacity will be further increased to a total of 17,000 units.
The services will continue to include pre-delivery inspection (PDI), handling of general cargo and project cargo as well as the management of heavy loads. The terminal is equipped for handling truck and rail cargo. With the investments, the company believes it is well positioned “to receive a larger volume of freight from Chinese OEMs”.
