MSC Expands North-West Europe Rail Services with New MEDWAY Belgium Branch

MSC(Mediterranean Shipping Company S.A) has announced the opening of a new branch of MEDWAY in Belgium, which commenced operations late last week.

Falling under MSC’s inland logistics partner MEDLOG, the new rail enterprise will operate as a licensed freight rail operator in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, and Austria.

From launch, the branch will operate daily connections between the Port of Antwerp-Bruges and four destinations in Germany: Neuss, Frankfurt, Germersheim, Wörth Am Rhein.

In the mid-term it will also connect the other major key ports in Northern Europe; Bremerhaven, Rotterdam, and Hamburg, with inland areas in central Europe.

While the service remains open to all types, this service will mainly facilitate the movement of white goods, chemicals, automotives and food stuffs.

Salvatore Prudente, MEDLOG Executive Director, said: “The new MEDWAY Belgium branch expands our rail freight operator footprint in Europe.

“Establishing rail services in the north-west of Europe enables us to guarantee links with our own assets, as well as expanding our offerings to current clients. We’re incredibly proud of the work our dedicated teams have done to get us to this point and look forwards to continue to grow in the rail freight operations space.”

The rail transit branch launches with four electric interoperable locomotives currently in the fleet and more to be supplied at a later date. The locomotives are supplied by MEDWAY partner Alphatrains and railcars by VTG.

In February MSC introduced a new intermodal solution for the Djibouti-Ethiopia corridor, further enhancing its East Africa portfolio.