Bertschi expands multimodal transport facilities and switches to biodiesel

Bertschi Group has doubled its terminal capacity at the ValuePark Terneuzen while all the on-site terminal machines will be fuelled by hydrogenated vegetable oil (HVO) or biodiesel.
The Swiss chemical logistics company’s switch to biofuels for these machines saves 90% of emissions per litre and is equivalent to a CO2 savings of several hundred tons per year.
The expansion also aims to meet the growing market demand for storage and intermodal solutions.
Bertschi Group has built a network set up for rail, road and waterway transportation throughout Europe.
The firm opened its 12,000m2 rail terminal at ValuePark Terneuzen in May 2008.
The expansion project to double the terminal’s size to 22,000m², fitting 1,000 TEU's and 25,000 tons was completed in November.
At ValuePark, Bertschi tank containers fill up the trains, upon which they return to Antwerp, where they are transferred to trains with destinations all over Europe.
“75% of all our containers and tank containers are transported via rail, 15% per barge/short sea and only 10% by truck. These rail figures are approximately the same for our Terneuzen operations,” said Jan Arnet, CEO Bertschi Group.
The expansion of Bertschi’s facilities adds not only space for storage, but also an extension of the rail track by 225m, allowing for longer trains to arrive at the facility. Through intermodal logistics chains, Bertschi saves around 70% of CO2 emissions when compared with road transport.
“In the past few years, even during the pandemic, we noticed a growing demand for storage facilities for containers at our Terneuzen terminal,” added Barry Mol, managing director of Bertschi Netherlands.
“Larger storage facilities and longer trains are necessary to support our ambition to become what we call a multi-colour terminal.”