Magazines — RZD-Partner International — 3 (11) September-November 2007
3 (11) September-November 2007
To WTO with new services: OAO RZD is deeply involved into services improvement and launching the system of international standards. This strategy became more crucial in the view of forthcoming joining the WTO and necessity to develop the transit potential of the country, believes OAO RZD Vice-President, CEO of First Cargo Company Salman Babayev.Outsourcing in retailing sector: The experience of developed states proves that retailing is very interested in partnership with external providers of transport and logistic services. According to the money turnover, Russian retailing will reach the international level in two or three years: its volume will be comparable with the one of German and French networks. Still, cooperation between Russian retailers and logisticians falls behind the world tendencies. Retailers are not satisfied with the quality of logistic providers’ services, although they consider them their future strategic allies.
1520 Gauge Goes to Europe: ÎÀÎ RZD initiated the project of 1520 gauge railway construction in Europe. This line will cross several European states and join Russia and Austria. In the opinion of its developers, this project will allow to increase the railway transportation volume between Europe and Russia having turned the route into an attractive opportunity for cargo owners.
Contents
To WTO with new services
INTERVIEW
OAO RZD is deeply involved into services improvement and launching the system of international standards. This strategy became more crucial in the view of forthcoming joining the WTO and necessity to develop the transit potential of the country, believes OAO RZD Vice-President, CEO of First Cargo Company Salman Babayev.
Outsourcing in retailing sector
THEME / logistics: from transport instrument to independent business
The experience of developed states proves that retailing is very interested in partnership with external providers of transport and logistic services. According to the money turnover, Russian retailing will reach the international level in two or three years: its volume will be comparable with the one of German and French networks. Still, cooperation between Russian retailers and logisticians falls behind the world tendencies. Retailers are not satisfied with the quality of logistic providers’ services, although they consider them their future strategic allies.Warehousing Logistics in Railway Manner
THEME / logistics: from transport instrument to independent business
ÎÀÎ RZD plans to launch a net of logistic centers by 2010. This way the company intends to develop multimodal schemes of transportation in Russia on the basis of railway infrastructure potential.Quality of Logistics Services in Russia Will Increase
THEME / logistics: from transport instrument to independent business
«International logistic companies will succeed on the Russian market if they can combine experience and European standards of work with a clear vision of how to offer, promote and provide services for deliveries to Russia», believes Frank Mueller, Chief Executive Officer of AsstrA group of companies. He told The RZD-Partner International about the specific features of the Russian logistic services market.
panorama. economics.
ECONOMICS / Panorama
The RF Ministry of Transport drafted the documents to define the borders of a new port of Taman (Krasnodar region, the Black Sea) and a border check-point and passed it to the Russian Government for agreement.Europe Fears Competition on Its Railways
ECONOMICS / Reform
«Competition and partnership, not war» – this was the official motto of the First Central and Eastern European Congress of Independent Rail Operators held in Warsaw in summer. «Cooperation is better than fight», the participants of the forum said.1520 Gauge Goes to Europe
ECONOMICS / Projects and Investments
ÎÀÎ RZD initiated the project of 1520 gauge railway construction in Europe. This line will cross several European states and join Russia and Austria. In the opinion of its developers, this project will allow to increase the railway transportation volume between Europe and Russia having turned the route into an attractive opportunity for cargo owners.To Follow the Common Interests
INTERVIEW
Economic and political aspects of 1520 gauge railway «export» to European countries, as well as competition and cooperation issues between railway, river and trucks, are commented upon by Fyodor Pekhterev, Director of GIPROTRANSTEI.
Moby Dick against the RF: state capture, misunderstanding or unfair investor?
ECONOMICS / Doing business in Russia
The conflict that flared early in 2007 between Containerships Oy container terminal in Saint-Petersburg and the local authorities together with the Federal Agency Rosstroy was the matter of great interest for European transport community. The RZD-Partner International has analyzed the basics of the dispute to evaluate how risky it is to invest into Russia.Gennady Fadeyev: «I Like Otherwise-Minded People»
ECONOMICS / Person
In April 2007, Gennady Fadeyev celebrated his 70-th birthday. Three times Head of a railway, Russian Minister of Railways for two terms, the first President of OAO Russian Railways, now he is a member of the company’s Board of Directors and an adviser of the RF Prime Minister.Mr. Fadeyev told The RZD-Partner International correspondent about his life and the railway reforms of the 1990-s as they were.
panorama. transportation.
TRANSPORTATION / Panorama
In H1 of 2007 Tallinn airport serviced 6,658 tons of cargoes (+13.3% year-on-year). The airports of Riga and Vilnius handled 4,179 tons (-28.7%) and 2,804 tons (+9.3%) respectively.Russia to Break Record in Coal Export
TRANSPORTATION / Cargo and routes
According to the RF Ministry of Natural Resources, in the next five years coal export transported from Russia will boost from 90 – 100 mln tons to 120 mln tons per year. By now the country, typically taking the fifth place in coal production, has reached the third position in terms of coal volume delivered to the world market. However, at the same time export has acquired rather an influential «competitor», i.e. demand growth on the domestic market, which can amend Government forecast. Considering the rapid economic development, domestic consumption can limit export volumes and, thus, cause prices for coal to rise on the world arena.How to Earn from TransContainer IPO
TRANSPORTATION / Container transportation
IPO of TransContainer will be the first contract in the frames of the third stage of the Russian railway transport reform. One of the targets of the reform is to make OAO RZD’s daughter companies listed. Thus, additional sources of investment into the federal railway infrastructure development are created.
Toll Roads in Russia: Good Investment Idea for European Companies
TRANSPORTATION / Auto Transport
The first toll roads are to be put into operation in Russia by 2010. For several projects feasibility studies have been made; money is given from the Federal budget to design new roads, and foreign investors, constructors and developers discuss the possibility of participating in the promising projects.Russian Sea Giant
TRANSPORTATION / sea transport
At the end of June, the RF President Vladimir Putin signed a decree on the merge of two Russian shipping companies, OAO Sovcomflot and OAO Novorossiysk Sea Shipping Company (Novoship). The Government of the state was charged to complete all the necessary procedures for the merger by March 2008. This deal will be one of the largest corporate contracts of 2007 in the world tanker sector. Thus, there will soon appear a player on the international market that will become one of top five largest tanker transporters.NOT only Finland
TRANSPORTATION / Port
There is a boom of ro-ro terminals construction in Russia. Only last year four projects were launched on the shore of the Baltic Sea. The local stevedoring companies argue that if all the terminals are built, the Finnish ports, via which 75% of imported vehicles are transported to Russia, will lose the car flow.
panorama. company
COMPANY / Panorama
KarakudukMunai, part of the LUKOIL Overseas group in Kazakhstan, put into operation a railway oil-loading rack with a tank farm. The capacity of the loading rack is 1 million tons of oil per year. The total cost of the facility is over USD 15 million. The general contractor was CaspyMunaiKurylys, a Kazakhstan company.Focus on Domestic Market
COMPANY / Cargo ahd routes
During six months of 2007 the transportation volume of OAO RZD exceeded 658 mln tons (+3.8% year-on-year). The planned volume was increased by 1.4%. Analyzing the company’s results for several recent years, the tendency of stable growth is obvious. It can be stated OAO RZD has been enhancing the cargo base. The cargo turnover grew by 8%, which is the record result compared to other modes of transport.New Brand of OAO RZD Reflects Its Ambitions Better
COMPANY / OAO RZD
Last spring OAO Russian Railways presented its new logotype. The railmen of the world still hardly know the new brand; however, it will more fully reflect the Russian carrier’s transformation into an international holding transport company, which sets ambitious targets.
Container Train: Transportation from Finland to Moscow
COMPANY / Carrier
A scheduled block train will start transporting freight regularly between Finland and Moscow. Delivery of containers, which takes only a day and a half from Helsinki to the heart of Moscow, is the outcome of an affort by many specialists, including railmen of the two states.Kaido Simmermann: Our interests – Russia, Europe and China
COMPANY / Carrier
In January 2007 the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Communications of Estonia paid USD 180 mln for 66% AS Eesti Raudtee shares (The Estonian Railways) to Baltic Rail Services OU (BRS) (see The RZD-Partner International ¹2, 2007). Later a new business-planwas developed for the company. Kaido Simmermann, Chairman of the Board, comments on further functioning of AS Eesti Raudtee on the market.
Chinese Rolling Stock Heads for the CIS
PRODUCTION AND SERVICES / Rolling Stock
Chinese rolling stock seems to be more and more attractive for OAO RZD, ÀÎ Kazakhstan Temir Zholy and Belarus railway. The major reason for that is the monopoly set by several enterprises on the market of rail car engineering which results in high prices, low quality and rolling stock deficit.
Customs Procedures at the Railway: New Technologies for Freight Owners
PRODUCTION AND SERVICES / Customs
Before 2007, OAO RZD chose several customs brokers annually to hold customs operations. This year changes have been made, and now the company works with only one broker – OOO Customs-Broker Centre (CBC), who won the tender. Vsevolod Titov, Deputy Head of the Customs-Broker Activity Department of OAO RZD, Major-General of Customs Service, told a correspondent of
The RZD-Partner International about the reasons for such a decision and the changes that will take place in the services for cargo owners and companies-operators.
Predictable victory
PRODUCTION AND SERVICES / High-Speed Operation
Oy Karelian Trains Ltd, operator of the high-speed line St. Petersburg – Helsinki, which is to open in 2009, announced that the winner of the tender on trains supply is Alstom company. The French producer presented its famous Pendolino train, which has been successfully used in Finland for a long time. According to the scale of works completed and the activeness of the sides, the project will be launched on time. Only the most pleasant «problem» remains, i.e. choosing the name for the train.