Ocean terminal and warehouse operator BLG Logistics has rebounded from the heavy write-downs it sustained in 2013, ramping up its pre-tax earnings to EUR30.1 million (USD33.7 million) last year.
The figure was up 136% from its 2013 result. Its finished vehicle and ro-ro handling division delivered a EUR9.7 million profit to the group’s consolidated results, after a EUR12.4 million loss due to an impairment on its facilities in Ukraine in the previous year.
The Bremen-based group benein Bremerhaven, a recovery in high and heavy equipment shipments, and increased demand for technical value-adding services in its vehicle terminals.
The number of vehicle liftings in Bremerhaven rose by 5% to 2.3 million last year, “and German carmakers expect exports to continue to rise through 2017”, said BLG Logistics CEO Frank Dreeke. However, a steep fall in volumes at its south European hub, Gioia Tauro, Italy, saw the overall volume of vehicles handled across its terminal and intermodal network stagnating at 7.4 million.
The performance of BLG Logistics’ warehousing and contract logistics business was disappointing as start-up problems on large material handling contracts in Bremen and Tuscaloosa, Alabama in the United States, led to a collapse in the division’s profits. By contrast, the group’s 50% shareholding in European container terminal operator Eurogate produced an increased profit of up to EUR35 million.
The company said it plans to develop its fledgling ocean and air freight forwarding business into a larger operation this year, following requests from cargo clients in its contract logistics division.
This post was sourced from IHS Maritime 360: View the original article here.
