APL Seeks to Invest in China’s Freight Rail System

Container line company interested in Chinese rail development
APL, the world’s fourth-largest container line, is looking to invest in China’s intermodal rail network as Beijing focuses economic development on industrial plants in the country’s interior.

“Intermodal rail has the most promise and potential to address the long-distance logistics and transportation needs of the country’s export manufacturers,” said Ken Glenn, APL’s North Asia president.

He told he told an audience attending the China Chongqing International Investment and Global Sourcing Fair on Friday that expanded freight rail service will attract increased investment to Western and Central China, regions coveted for their lower manufacturing costs.

“With expanded infrastructure, the rate of investment in these regions will accelerate and grow at a faster rate than China overall,” he said.

APL, which previously invested in intermodal rail service in India and Egypt, wants to invest in Chinese rail development. ““We believe we’re uniquely qualified to bring that experience to China, and we will look for opportunities here to connect China’s interior with the coastal regions,” Glenn said.

Historically, most Chinese exports have been produced in the country’s coastal areas. But Glenn said manufacturers will increasingly move west as capacity, frequency and the quality of rail connections between the interior and China’s seaports improve. He added that railroads are less expensive and produce fewer emissions than trucks and provide greater flexibility than river barges.

APL pioneered intermodal rail transport for containerized cargo in the U.S. during the 1980s. In 2007, sister company APL Logistics introduced IndiaLinx, the first private freight rail system in India. Since then it has also established intermodal rail service in Egypt.

Source: www.joc.com