Belgium’s inland Port of Liège (PAL) has invested more than 9 million euros in expanding the container terminal at its Trilogiport road-river-rail freight hub.
Jointly funded by the EU and Wallonia, the investment “will enhance the attractiveness and competitiveness of the Port of Liège while forming part of a wider project to promote multimodal transport. For example, DPW Liege Container Terminals, the terminal operator, will double its transhipment capacity, enabling it to meet the needs of its customers and increase its container transport activities,” PAL said.
The aim is “to limit the growth in truck traffic between the ports of Antwerp-Bruges and Liège, and to provide companies in Liège and Wallonia with a genuine alternative to road transport for their goods from Liège Trilogiport,” added PAL.
Yves Demeffe, managing director of the Liège Port Authority, commented: “We are almost tripling the total surface area of the terminal (close to 10 hectares), and its terminal’s capacity will increase to 250,000 TEUs. This development will also make it possible to step up our offering of high-value container logistics services on site – such as stuffing and de-stuffing operations and order preparation – and will strengthen the terminal’s role in the sustainable distribution of goods.”
Tackling sharp rail freight decline
The emphasis on reducing road-borne container traffic could provide scope to arrest the sharp decline in rail freight handled at the Port of Liège in recent years – due principally to the crisis affecting the steel industry. Having totalled more than 1.5 million tonnes in 2018, by 2022, the last full year for which annual results are available, it had diminished to 291,186 tonnes.
A spokesperson for PAL confirmed to Railfreight.com that the drop in rail freight traffic had continued in 2023, mainly due to decreasing demand from the steel sector, particularly for products used in automobile manufacturing.
Container rail shuttles currently operate between the Port of Liege and Italy, generating annual traffic of 20,000 swap bodies annually. Around six trains operate per week, three between Liège and Milan and three between Liège and Piacenza. The Port has also seen the operation of trains to and from China.
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