Bucharest, September 13, 2023 – SLS Cargo, the logistics and transport operator owned by FAN Courier, inaugurates the first intermodal terminal it operates exclusively, following an investment made in P3 Bucharest A1, one of the most modern and advanced industrial parks in Romania. With this, SLS Cargo confirms its medium and long-term development strategy announced in 2020, immediately after joining the FAN Courier portfolio.
The investment made by SLS Cargo, valued at 1.9 million euros, grants it exclusive operator status of the terminal built in the industrial park. This significantly enhances the company’s operational capacity, which was previously based solely in the railway terminal in Buftea. Over the past three years, SLS Cargo has accumulated a total leased area of 55,000 m2, becoming the second most important tenant of the park owned by P3 Logistic Parks, on the A1 motorway.
“The new terminal, SLS BUCHAREST INTERMODAL TERMINAL, addresses the need to identify solutions to the small number of railway terminals compared to the optimal requirement for the Romanian market. We are delighted to have found in P3 Logistic Parks a partner with whom we could carry out an investment that is extremely necessary for both our development and the development of intermodal freight transport. By using the new terminal, SLS Cargo introduces the concept of a ‘single window’ by combining road, maritime, and air transport services with any of the storage, distribution, and customs consultancy services also in our portfolio,” said Mihai Stoica, Managing Director of SLS Cargo.
Intermodal transport is a strategic option for global cargo delivery. It involves freight – often stored within containers – being transported via multiple modes of transport, such as road, rail, and marine. The freight itself is not handled when the mode of transport changes.
By the end of this year, the company estimates the new SLS Bucharest Intermodal Terminal will reach an operational capacity of up to 750 containers per month, with an average of 4 maneuvers per container. Monthly, the new terminal will be transited by 15 trains on the Constanța Port – SLS Cargo P3 Terminal route. The main beneficiaries of the transported goods will predominantly be the major logistics parks in the west of the capital, to and from which the maritime containers will transport consumer goods, construction materials, or other raw materials. The new intermodal terminal offers a higher efficiency, thanks to shorter train operation times and faster unloading and delivery to customers.
“We enjoy the success of our customers, and we are always open to offering them the best logistics solutions, along with the complete facilities of a modern logistics park and the proactive approach of the P3 Romania team. The rapid growth rate of SLS Cargo in recent years and the choice of P3 as a logistics partner, demonstrate both the importance of the transportation sector for other industries and the growth which P3 Bucharest A1 Logistics Park offers its tenants. In the three years of collaboration, we have grown together and found sustainable and operationally efficient solutions for constant expansion needs. In this context, and due to the area of expertise, SLS Group becomes the official operator of the railway terminal within the P3 park,” said Cristina Pop, Head of Asset Management at P3 Logistic Parks Romania.
The SLS Bucharest Intermodal Terminal terminal will have KALMAR equipment for handling containers and a fleet of specialized containerized road transport platforms.
Also, SLS Bucharest Intermodal Terminal will have an operating system – TOS (terminal operating system) that will offer: integration and automation of operational processes between internal departments, integration with partners associated with the business (customers, carriers, shipping lines), internal and external predictability of terminal events.
The system will have GATE, RAIL, YARD and BILLING modules.
Among the benefits of operating the intermodal terminal with an implemented operating system we can list: optimization of terminal operations and processes, communication through EDI message exchange, report generation, the benefit being both internal and for customers, who can obtain information of interest by accessing the terminal system.
The operating system will be made available by “NAVIS”, one of the largest software developers in this field.
SLS Cargo: The logistics services company SLS CARGO started operations in 2014 by opening its first operational office in Bucharest. In 2015, the company’s activity developed by opening two new locations in Rădăuți and Constanța, followed in 2016 by the inauguration of the first SLS Cargo warehouse in Bucharest. Along with the formation of a new team, 2017 also meant the opening of the first railway terminal in Bucharest exclusively operated by SLS Cargo. In 2018, the rapid development in the local market encouraged the crossing of borders and the opening of the first offices in Bulgaria and Italy, as well as new global partnerships. With a diversified client portfolio in each industry and a team of over 150 employees, SLS Cargo has become one of the most dynamic companies in the field in Romania. In 2019, FAN Courier, the leader of the courier market in Romania, entered the company’s shareholding, the objective of the partnership signed with the shareholder SLS Cargo being to expand the services offered to courier customers.
P3 Logistic Parks: P3 is a long-term investor, manager and developer of European logistics real estate with over 7.9 million m² of assets under management, and a land bank of 1.9 million m² for further development. P3 is commercially active in 12 countries and has been investing and developing in Europe for more than two decades. P3 employs more than 250 people in 11 offices in major European cities. The head office is located in Prague. P3 offers integrated development, asset and property management services.
