5 Jul 2018 17:02

FESCO launches weekly container train from Krasnoyarsk to China via Kazakhstan

VLADIVOSTOK. July 5 (Interfax) - Freight Group FESCO, a subsidiary of Far East Shipping Co has launched a weekly container train from BLTK's terminal in Krasnoyarsk to Chengdu in China's Sichuan Province and Xian in Shaanxi Province via Kazakhstan.

FESCO said in a statement that a trial train made up of 41 forty foot containers with export goods will arrive at its destination on July 9.

The new route will pass through the Lokot/Dostyk/Alashankou border crossings.

The total journey time is six days.

The service also includes customs registration services and "last mile" deliveries by road to a client's warehouse.

This is FESCO's second overland export service from Krasnoyarsk to China.

FESCO launched a scheduled train to Chengdu via Mongolia through the Naushki/Zamyn-Uud/Erenhot border crossings in February 2018.

In addition, the Vladivostok-Krasnoyarsk-Vladivostok service is currently operating as part of the intermodal chain linking Russia to Asia-Pacific Regions countries via the Commerical Port of Vladivostok.

"The development of overland international routes is ones of FESCO's priority strategies aimed at increasing volumes of container freight haulage. FESCO started working on the continental China-Russia-Europe route at the end of 2016, launching the Tianjin-Moscow train and the China-Germany-China transit service via Russia and Mongolia was set up in 2017," the statement said.

There is also a scheduled train from Xiamen to Moscow.

FESCO hauled 3,900 TEU (20-foot equivalent unit) on overland international routes in 2017, reaching 6,200 TEU in H1 2018 .

FESCO Group is one of the largest owners and operators of port infrastructure in Russia. It is an intermodal operator that manages marine, railway, and automobile transport capacities and stevedoring services at its own terminals at Russian and CIS ports.

The group owns OJSC Commercial Port of Vladivostok , the largest stevedore company at the port of Vladivostok, Transgarant railway operator and 50% of Russkaya Troika. FESCO operates around 36,000 containers, 3,500 flatcars and 20 ships. It also owns a 25.1% stake in TransContainer .

Ziyavudin Magomedov's Summa Group owns 32.5% of FESCO, GHP Group owns 23.8%, TPG holds 17.4% and East Capital owns 4.9%.