The Port of Gothenburg's standing as an export gateway for Swedish paper will be boosted even further with the announcement by the logistics company RPG of plans to build a new forestry terminal.
Paper, timber and other forestry industry products are moved by rail from paper mills and saw mills throughout Sweden to the Port of Gothenburg for onward transport by sea to export markets worldwide. In certain case southbound goods need to be reloaded into containers.
The potential for reloading will increase markedly in Gothenburg with the news that logistics company RPG, Roger Peterson Group, will be investing in a new logistics terminal specialising in the forestry industry. The terminal will be beside the port at Arendal. RPG has developed the project in close collaboration with NCC, which will build the property, and the Gothenburg Port Authority, which sold the land.
"In recent times world demand for Swedish paper has increased and RPG's new terminal means we have yet another company in the port serving the forestry industry, further reinforcing our role as a hub for Swedish paper exports," says Magnus Kårestedt, Gothenburg Port Authority chief executive.
The new forestry terminal will result in increased volumes for the Port of Gothenburg. Within a year the terminal will be able to handle 1.5 million tonnes of paper and other forestry products, equivalent to 110,000 containers (20-foot TEU). RPG is aiming for full capacity utilisation within just a few years. A large proportion will be completely new volumes for the port and will be a significant addition. In 2009, 820,000 containers were shipped through the port. In comparison, the second largest port in Sweden, Helsingborg, handled 125,000 containers during the same period.
Exports to the rest of Europe pass through the roro-terminals whilst exports to other parts of the world will pass via the Skandia Container Terminal