Freightliner, the American-owned rail freight and logistics provider in the UK, has announced a new five-year contract with Singapore headquartered Ocean Network Express (ONE). The shipping company and the landward logistics provider have been moving containers around the world and around the UK together for six years. Freightliner signed their first deal with ONE in 2018. The partnership has been growing ever since.
The new contract between Freightliner, the UK’s largest maritime intermodal logistics operator, and ONE, the seventh largest container shipping company in the world, presents Great Britain with a continuity of container traffic moved by rail. The announcement comes in the light of widespread political commitment to growing rail freight as an underpinning of the economy. Both companies have that in mind too.
Extensive network supports logistics industry
It is just over a year since a Freightliner service was dispatched from Southampton to Crewe, fuelled by GD+, an environmentally kinder alternative to fossil-derived diesel. The fuel costs were met by ONE. It may therefore be no surprise that the two companies have renewed their vows, and remain wed to a decarbonisation programme. That first train continued under electric traction to Freightliner’s Coatbridge terminal, in Central Scotland.
“We will be moving intermodal cargo from both our London Gateway and Southampton terminals to our various strategically located inland terminals right across the UK”, says a statement from Freightliner. “Our daily services and extensive network of UK terminals help to meet ONE’s business needs, and our one point of contact model means we can deliver seamless logistics solutions.”
Moving inland from Southampton and London Gateway
Ocean Network Express (ONE) has been a magenta-liveried part of the global shipping scene since April 2018. The company has more than 210 ships at sea, carrying over 1.5 million TEU. More than half that fleet puts into port somewhere in the world every week. The British ports at London and Southampton are among them. Both are served shoreside by the equally striking gold and black of Freightliner. On land, Freightliner and its partners form the largest maritime intermodal logistics operator in the UK. The parent company, Genesee and Wyoming, is as large a logistics operator on land, as ONE is at sea.
“This is a significant step forward in delivering impactful environmental benefits for the UK rail freight industry”, said Andrew Daly, Chief Commercial Officer for Freightliner. “We are leading the UK rail freight industry when it comes to delivering decarbonisation benefits, and we are delighted to be partnering with ONE to make this happen.”
Both companies working towards net-zero
“Their strategically located terminals and daily services from Southampton and London Gateway help us to move our goods efficiently and effectively across the UK”, explained Nick Reay, head of operations UK, at ONE. “[Freightliner’s] commitment to sustainability, including offering alternative fuel choices, aligns with our ambition to continue to decarbonise the supply chain and be one of the most sustainable shipping lines in the world.”
Freightliner and ONE have both committed to alternative fuel choices, including Freightliner’s well-publicised fleet of electric locomotives and their extensive trials with non-fossil-derived alternatives to power their diesel fleet. Both companies claim carbon dioxide emissions reductions in excess of 90 per cent over diesel. Shipping has been in the spotlight for emissions at sea, but that is something ONE, and other carriers have contested. ONE, for their part, have on order a fleet of new 13,000 TEU vessels equipped with methanol dual-fuel engines, which they say is working towards its target of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. ONE’s magenta livery can be seen on a number of Freightliner class 66 locomotives in operation across Britain.