Tata Steel Netherlands is introducing a modal shift to rail for a significant portion of its steel transport that currently takes place by water and road. “This primarily concerns deliveries to customers and steel buyers in southern Poland and Slovakia,” the steel production company announced.
Previously, the steel was transported directly by truck and ship to nearby ports, after which it had to travel approximately 600 kilometers by truck. “This change will save 3.5 million road kilometers annually”, says Tata Steel. “The switch to the new rail route will result in a substantial CO₂ reduction of approximately 4,300 tons per year.”
“Rail transport is a strategic pillar in our logistics transition to lower CO₂ emissions,” says Martin van der Meer, Director of Outbound Logistics at the company. “Based on our sustainability goals and the need to build more robust and efficient supply chains, we’ve opted for a significant scaling up of rail transport. With this new route, we’re introducing a reliable, sustainable, and efficient solution with lower emissions in scope 3. Moreover, we save on packaging materials because the steel no longer needs to be seaworthy. And it’s faster: the steel reaches the customer within 30 hours.”
Three trains every two weeks
The sustainability drive is part of Tata Steel Netherlands’ mobility strategy. “Logistics is being optimised in close collaboration with logistics partners throughout the supply chain”, according to the company. “From now on, three trains loaded with steel coils will depart every two weeks for destinations in Eastern Europe. In the Netherlands and Germany, these trains will run on green energy. This CO₂ reduction is the result of intensive collaboration with approximately 50 customers, including major OEMs (automotive manufacturers), as well as buyers in the engineering, construction, and packaging sectors.”
This article was originally published by our sister publication SpoorPro.nl.