The booming rail transport from China to Europe has extended connections to Vietnam. For the first time, the railway has a container train running directly from Vietnam to Europe since the end of July.
According to information from the Vietnam Railways Corporation ( Vietnam Railways – VNR ) , the freight container train consists of 23 40-foot containers transporting goods such as textiles, footwear, electronics. The cruise train departs from Yen Vien International Terminal, transports to Zhengzhou (Zhengzhou) in China’s Henan province, and then connects to the Asia-Europe train to reach the destination.
A representative of the Vietnam Railways Corporation said that, in the context of the global outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic, international sea transport is facing difficult times, railway transport is the main transport partner. reliable transfer to bring goods from Vietnam to Europe. The railway has the advantage of an efficient international rail connection system, trains arriving at the destination station on time, reasonable transport costs, and low impact on the environment.
Currently, the Vietnam Railways Corporation and its European partner are developing a plan to transport 8 trains/month departing from Vietnam. Total estimated transit time for the entire journey is from 25-27 days.
Currently, Vietnam Railways Corporation is providing container transportation services by rail between Vietnam – China and transiting to Russia, Europe, ASEAN countries and Central Asian countries with package logistics services for customers. customers.
It can be seen that the successful organization of the first container train from Vietnam to Belgium will continue to open up rail transport routes to Europe in addition to the routes operated to Germany, Poland…
However, according to Robert Foster, Development Manager of Norman Global Logistics , rail transport from Hanoi may not be a simple solution for products sourcing in the northern region of Vietnam.
He told The Loadstar: “Currently, sea freight – if the ship leaves on time – from Vietnam to Hamburg takes about 30 to 35 days. And with all the current delays on rail from China to Europe, you’re lucky to get to Hamburg within 30 days that way.
“So I’m not sure how competitive rail from Vietnam will be when you factor in the additional transit time.”
China-Europe rail freight has grown rapidly this year, surging 52% in volume in the first half of the year, to 707,000 teu, according to Chinese media. The number of train trips increased by 43%, to 7,377 over the same period.
But soaring demand and modal shifts are continuing to create congestion and delays on rail lines, Mr.
“There was a delay due to a large amount of goods being transferred to the rail from the sea. Cargo may not be loaded on board for two or three weeks, depending on the shipping line, because none of them are easy to handle at the moment,” he explained.
“Additionally, there are floods in Zhengzhou, Germany and the Netherlands, and a lack of equipment and railcars for transport at the Brest-Mala border [between Poland and Belarus].”
Since 2017, when the China-Vietnam railway was opened, cross-border container transport has increased more and more, and customs clearance efficiency has been increasing rapidly. In the first 6 months of 2021, there were 145 rail container transport trains between China and Vietnam, an increase of 64.8% over the same period, creating an important basis for the deployment of container transport from Vietnam to Europe. .
It is expected that this August, China will continue to cooperate with Vietnam to deploy 2 rail transport trips between Vietnam – China – Europe .
Source: Phaata.com (According to Chinhphu.vn, The Loadstar, The World & Vietnam Newspaper)