LTG Cargo plans to launch weekly container train to Ukraine

LTG Cargo, a transport company of the Lithuanian Railways (Lietuvos geležinkeliai, LTG), is going to launch a weekly container train to Ukraine due to the complicated situation at the automobile border crossing points.

According to Ukrinform, LTG Cargo reported this.

"In November alone, we received almost 80 new requests for the transportation of goods to and from Ukraine. The vast majority of them are from companies that have been transporting goods by truck until now. The unprecedented situation encourages customers to consider the possibility of transporting frozen food, paper and cardboard products, chemicals or wood by rail to or from Ukraine," Eglė Šimė, CEO of LTG Cargo, said.

The search for new solutions is also stimulated by the significantly increased costs of road transportation. LTG Cargo estimates that once the train is fully operational, it will be twice as cheap to transport cargo by rail as by road. In one trip, the train can carry as much cargo as 36 trucks would normally carry.

However, the transportation of certain categories of goods by rail is limited by the lack of suitable containers on the market. It is about 40-foot containers with autonomous refrigeration equipment.

"As demand has increased and the supply of such containers in the region has remained unchanged, customers have to look for ways to reliably protect containers for perishable goods," LTG Cargo emphasized.

At the same time, there are already results of cooperation with new customers: a train with a groupage cargo of three customers in containers has been formed from the Kaunas intermodal terminal to Ukraine. It will transport PET granules and ammonium sulfate, as well as empty containers. The train is due to reach Ukraine next week and is expected to take 8-9 days to get there.

As Ukrinform reported, in November, Ukrzaliznytsia and LTG Cargo tested the Klaipėda-Kaunas-Kyiv intermodal route.

Photo: LTG Cargo