The opening of the Seminar on the Transport Chain and how to improve the integration of customs services
Check against delivery.
ladies and gentlemen,
I greatly appreciate your presence here today. You represent Russian Railways, an organization that manages no less than 90,000 kilometres of track. Laid end to end, the tracks would circle the planet more than twice! Rail infrastructure in Russia is of such a high level that we can learn a lot from you. You know a great deal about transport chains, not only within Russia but across its border as well. Your contribution today is thus invaluable.
This seminar is dedicated to the question of how we can make the transport of goods between the Netherlands and Russia faster, more efficient and more sustainable. More specifically, we will be looking at ways to better integrate the role of customs into the transport chain.
My introduction to this seminar has three parts:
· First, I would like to tell you something about the position of the Netherlands as a leading transport country;
· Second, I will touch briefly on the importance of sustainable transport corridors;
· And third, I will speak about what is needed to truly get these sustainable transport corridors between Russia and the Netherland off the ground and working.
The Netherlands lies on the delta of the Rhine and the Meuse on the North Sea. Nature has thus made us the gateway to Europe. From the port of Rotterdam – the largest in Europe – we can reach virtually every major European economic centre within twenty-four hours. Our country is small in size but big within the global transport network. Both in quantity and in quality. To give you a better picture:
· We are the world’s sixth largest exporter and seventh largest importer.
· We are responsible for over one-fifth of European road transport.
· We house half of the European Distribution Centres for American and Asian companies.
· We are by far the most important inland shipping country in Europe.
And I could go on....
You can only acquire such a strong position if you constantly work on the quality of your infrastructure and transport chains. And that is exactly what we do.
The World Bank lists us in second place on the Global Logistics Performance Index. We owe this position in part to the intelligent application of IT in our transport chains and to the efficiency of our customs service.
The heart of our transport network consists of two main ports: the port of Rotterdam and Amsterdam Schiphol Airport.
This year, Rotterdam won the Asian Freight & Supply Chain Award for the best seaport in Europe. Amsterdam Schiphol Airport won the prizes for the best airport in Europe and the best air cargo terminal in Europe.
For economies with an international orientation like those of the Netherlands and Russia, state of the art facilities for the delivery, storage and distribution of goods are of vital importance. And they require considerable investment. For example, the Netherlands has launched a project to expand the port of Rotterdam: the Maasvlakte 2 project for an expansion of nearly 2500 acres. The new section will lie off the coast in the sea and will make it possible to double the number of containers shipped.
Last year we also opened a rail freight line that runs directly from the port of Rotterdam to Germany. This line contributes to making transport to the hinterland more efficient.
Russia is also working hard on improving its infrastructure. Here in Moscow, in St Petersburg and in other cities.
Ladies and gentlemen, investing in infrastructure is important. But it is not enough. We have to look further than our borders. And ensure that the various links in the chain are properly connected to one another. Goods need to be able to be moved smoothly to their destination.
And even that is still not enough. Transport is not just about infrastructure and shipping goods from one place to another. One of the big challenges in transport policy is dealing with the side-effects of expansion. What effects do our activities have on the environment, on safety, on available space?
The transport sector is being scrutinised critically. It could be cleaner. It could be more economical. In light of the international agreements we have made, including the Kyoto protocol, it indeed must become cleaner and more economical.
Efficiency and sustainability, therefore, have to progress at the same pace. And fortunately, a more efficient transport chain is almost always a more sustainable one.
International connections that are efficient and sustainable are of great importance to the Netherlands; after all, we are a leading transport nation.
In Europe, we are actively working on establishing sustainable freight corridors. These are international rail links that can be used to transport goods without hindrance.
The Rotterdam-Genoa freight corridor is a good example. This is a rail link of over 1500 kilometres that runs through four countries: the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and Italy.
A lot is involved in getting such a link to run smoothly. Not only do the infrastructure and the material have to connect up seamlessly, but also the security systems, the administrative procedures and the customs services, etcetera. A swift, electronic information exchange among all parties involved is crucial to this.
The amount of goods transported across Dutch railways has more than doubled over the past ten years. The majority of the goods is destined for other countries. The demand for transport has risen sharply in Russia as well. And that growth will continue. The pressure on transport links will increase.
This requires us to think internationally and act internationally.
The Netherlands is expressly seeking to cooperate with Russia.
We have noted that the importance of good transport links with Russia is steadily growing. Last year, our exports to Russia rose by twenty percent. A large proportion of this growing export consists of machinery and transport material. But Dutch fruit, vegetables and dairy products are also travelling to Russia in increasing quantities.
A number of Dutch transport companies have already extended their operations to Russia. They want to increase the volume and efficiency of Dutch-Russian freight flows.
To achieve this, a first step is to improve and strengthen Dutch and Russian transport networks. Both road and rail.
However, good physical links are not all that is needed. The Dutch and Russian transport and logistics industries have to reach proper agreements for allowing goods to cross borders as quickly and as sustainably as possible. It is therefore good to see Dutch and Russian companies meeting one another at this seminar.
And a great deal is also expected of our governments. Differences in regulations, procedures, security requirements and customs processes are deep pitfalls in our path. They slow transport flows down instead of speeding them up, make them more polluting rather than cleaner and more expensive rather than more competitive. So it is important to us all that we work on harmonizing and modernizing our regulations and customs procedures. Several examples will be highlighted In this seminar.
I would like to see a more efficient and sustainable freight corridor established between the Netherlands and Russia. A smooth link between Rotterdam, Moscow and St Petersburg. The importance of our economic relations demands this.
It is possible for train travellers to get from Amsterdam to Moscow direct by rail. This should also be possible for goods.
Various initiatives have already been taken. The H&S group, a leading Dutch logistics provider, aims to create the Kaluga Dryport which should be capable of handling international block trains. We would like to work towards permanent rail links that use clear, advance agreements to reduce red tape as far as possible.
Currently, freight trains travelling between Rotterdam and Moscow have an average speed of only twenty kilometres an hour. This is due to all the delays along the way, including those caused by customs procedures.
It has to be possible to speed this up! An ambitious economic agenda goes hand in hand with an ambitious transport agenda. In the future, it should be possible for block trains to reach Moscow within four days.
To achieve this, it is essential that we succeed in optimally integrating our customs services into our transport chains.
This requires our being able to understand each other’s position. And it requires the will to work on solutions together.
This seminar offers an opportunity to take a step forwards together.
Ladies and gentlemen, efficient and sustainable transport is in all our best interests. Russia and the Netherlands are important trading partners and thus also important transport partners.
If we desire to intensify our economic ties, we must also focus on improving our transport links. We cannot realize the one without the other.
I am convinced that this seminar will deliver new ideas. Let us work together on concrete solutions. That is a goal I, for my part, am committed to.