On April 10, the first UK-China export train departed from DP World London Gateway’s rail terminal in South Essex, to Yiwu in the Zhe Jiang province in eastern China. Products on board include soft drinks, vitamins, pharmaceuticals and baby products. The train will cover a distance of more than 12,000 km in three weeks.
This inaugural export train bound for China departed just under three months after the first ever import train from China arrived in the UK. The service is part of China’s One Belt, One Road programme aims at reviving the ancient Silk Road trading routes to the West.
After passing through the channel tunnel into France and Belgium, the DB Cargo locomotive will call in Duisburg, Germany before InterRail pull the cargo through Poland, Belarus, Russia and Kazahkstan before the train crosses to Yiwu, China.
Container operator OneTwoThree Logistics is overseeing the transport and booking of cargo for the UK/China rail freight trains, in conjunction with Yiwu Timex Industrial Investments Co., which is running the service with China Railway Container.
This first consignment of cargo to go by rail, which is cheaper and less restrictive than air freight and faster than sea freight, comes less than two weeks after the triggering of Article 50 and the start of the formal process of leaving the European Union, which has placed an emphasis on the UK to secure trade deals with countries all over the world.
“We are proud to be playing a key role in facilitating this significant trade occasion between the UK and China. DP World London Gateway, one of the UK’s largest logistics hubs is designed and developed to ensure products can be both imported and exported from the UK via ship or train in a faster, safer and more reliable way than ever before. We look forward to enabling and facilitating more trade between the UK, China and the whole world,” Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Group CEO, DP World said.
Photo: Ms. Liming Liang, Vice Governor of the Zhejiang province, Rupert Soames, the UK Prime Minister’s Business Ambassador for Infrastructure and Transport, DP World Group Chairman and CEO, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, the Mayor of Yiwu, Shi Wenzhen, Xubin Feng, Chairman of Yiwu Timex Industrial Investment Co.
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