Alvance British Aluminium has entered a 10-year leasing agreement with VTG Rail UK. The deal is for the supply of 20 modern four-axle powder tank wagons. The company says it marks a major step forward in the transformation of its rail logistics. The wagons are set for a long career between the Port of Blyth in Northumberland and the Fort William smelter in Lochaber.
The new wagons will replace a fleet of two-axle models. The older, smaller wagons have been in service since the late 1980s. The new fleet will nearly double the payload capacity per trip. This upgrade will reduce the number of annual rail journeys required from 107 to 76. That’s a 30 per cent reduction. Alvance says that reduction delivers meaningful gains in both efficiency and environmental performance. However, it also likely means fewer trains operating.
Round-the-clock smelting at Fort William
VTG, the European rail freight logistics and wagon leasing company headquartered in Hamburg, has officially handed over a fleet of newly commissioned alumina tank wagons. The rolling stock is now ready to enter operational service with Alvance. Their introduction forms part of a wider infrastructure upgrade for Alvance at their Blyth port site. Blyth is a hive of railway activity just now. It’s also where the recently reopened Northumberland passenger railway terminates.
The company says a significantly enhanced rail loading facility is on track for completion shortly. That should ensure compatibility with the new fleet and long-term logistics resilience. The transition has been planned to maintain uninterrupted alumina supply for the round-the-clock smelting operations at Fort William, 250 miles (400km) away on the north west coast of Scotland.
Three decades of service
“This handover marks a significant milestone in our logistics modernisation programme,” said Tom Uppington, Managing Director of Alvance British Aluminium. “Our partnership with VTG is helping us move more efficiently, more sustainably and with greater resilience. These new four-axle wagons, combined with major infrastructure upgrades, will enable us to carry higher payloads per journey, reduce the carbon intensity of our operations and support the long-term sustainability of our supply chain.”
The outgoing fleet has served for more than three decades. “The demands of modern manufacturing and our climate commitments require smarter solutions,” said Uppington. “This project represents a multimillion-pound investment in future-proofing our logistics, supporting both operational efficiency and our reduction in our carbon footprint.”
Supporting local contractors
The introduction of the new wagons – designated “JPA”, into service with Alvance British Aluminium is a significant achievement for both of our companies. “VTG has had the pleasure of working closely with Alvance to understand how to best-serve their business and operations and transform this into a tangible wagon solution within Alvance’s required timeframe,” said Archie Lucas, Sales & Account Manager at VTG.
According to both partners, the project has also brought benefits beyond the rail line, supporting a variety of local contractors in Blyth and Fort William during the upgrade phases, bringing investment into local economies and strengthening regional capability. The next phase of the project will see the wagons retrofitted with VTG’s advanced iWagon technology. Originally designed for bulk powder transport, these wagons will benefit from integrated real time monitoring, predictive maintenance, and improved fleet management, adding another layer of intelligence and resilience to our logistics chain.
