Barges to help brewery skip traffic jams into Rotterdam

VAN UDEN based in Rotterdam has opened a new barge terminal in Alphen aan den Rijn, 60 kilometres from Rotterdam, the use of which will avoid traffic on rapidly congesting highways.

First customer Heineken expects to export 200 containers a day from its brewery in Zoeterswoude, 15 kilometres away, reports London's Containerisation International. The brewery expects barge transport will avoid congestion from the expansion of Rotterdam's A15 motorway, leading to the big container terminals.

The new 200,000-TEU barge terminal Alpherium cost EUR15 million (US$21 million) to construct, including EUR6 million for the land that is leased by Van Uden from the Port of Rotterdam.

It said the cargo will mostly be heading for the US, which will require transport by road to Alpherium. Thereafter, four 85-TEU barges each day will carry the beverages to Rotterdam's container terminals.

"With a wink to the late Mr Freddy Heineken's famous marketing slogan Heineken refreshes the parts other beers cannot reach, I would add that the Port of Rotterdam connects places other ports just reach," said Port of Rotterdam CEO Hans Smits.

It noted that Philips also recently switched part of its goods from road to barge apparently for the same reason. It now uses Maersk Line's extended gate facility between the Port of Mordijk and Rotterdam, instead of directly trucking the traffic all the way from its distribution centre in Roosendaal to Rotterdam.

Krzysztof Przesmycki, global commodity strategy manager at Philips said, "We are making this modal shift with a view to the future. We want to keep ahead of congestion, with sustainability as an important incentive."

In 2009 barges raised their share of Rotterdam's hinterland traffic from 30 per cent to 33 per cent, while road transportation's share fell from 57 per cent to 56 per cent.
(Source:www.schednet.com)