The Port of Dunkirk is poised to launch construction work on a combined transport terminal, enabling trailers and swap bodies to be loaded onto rail wagons. The facility is scheduled to enter service early next year and its management and operation has been put out to tender.
Dunkirk claims to be France’s leading multi-modal port and the project to build a combi terminal is in line with a strategy to encourage the modal shift to rail. Approached by Railfreight.com, a spokesperson for the port authority could not provide additional information about the project, such as investment costs andthe terminal’s capacity at this stage.
“The current timing does not allow us to say more. We are still in the tendering process to appoint the terminal’s operator. We should be in a position to make an announcement next month,” the spokesperson said. Moreover, at the beginning of next month the port is expected to have annual data available on its rail freight traffic. It currently handles around 10 million tonnes on a yearly basis.
A well-connected port
The port is connected to the national and European rail networks, notably via France’s eastern regional line, to Germany, the Rhône Valley and Italy. Since mid-2022, the extension of Dunkirk’s container terminal’s four dry port tracks from 350 metres to 850 metres has made it possible to operate block trains, generating significant productivity gains.
Intermodal transport services from the port’s container terminal offer a range of connections with the main multimodal platforms in northern France, such as Dourges and Metz and the hubs in the south of the country – Lyon, Miramas, Marseille, Fos-sur-mer, Bordeaux and Bayonne-Mouguerre.
Operators include Greenmodal and Sogetran Logistics. Last year, CEVA Logistics began operations at its new finished vehicle logistics (FVL) hub at Dunkirk Port. The hub is equipped with a rail spur and connects to maritime import and export trade flows to and from the northern French maritime gateway.