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Time to consider the advantages of ‘unaccompanied’ for EU trade
Brexit – the gift that keeps on giving for trade and supply chain professionals. A blizzard of new requirements and acronyms at the border and, as was highlighted in last month’s BIFAlink , there are more to come when full UK import controls are introduced in 2022. Changes in the wider market, like EU wide driver shortages, are making roadfreight more problematic and expensive. It is a good job we are an adaptable and resilient industry. Although much of the media focus on UK-EU trade has been on accompanied ferry traffic, the reality of the movement of goods to and from the EU is of course more diverse. That is shown in the government’s figures for 2020 freight volumes, with 17% of UK-EU trade flows being accompanied ro-ro. Even if we just narrowed down the volumes to unitised modes, it is a two- thirds/one-third split between unaccompanied (trailers and containers) and accompanied. Unaccompanied options are also growing. More capacity on established routes, such as into the Humber and the Thames. New services into the likes of Medway, Liverpool, Poole and Teesport. New facilities at Tilbury, Medway and Hull. Sea miles versus land miles Why do we see this happening? Because some customers, perhaps prompted to look again at their plans by the changes in the regulatory landscape and a renewed focus on resilience, are taking a different view on sea miles versus land miles, the relative risk of unplanned delays and the deployment and productivity of hauliers. Depending on the nature of the cargo being carried and the destination – particularly further north and west of the UK – the financial sums add up for unaccompanied movements. But it is not just the financial aspects of the transaction. As we all strive to play our part in more sustainable freight solutions, the much lower Tim Morris of the UK Major Ports Group analyses UK/EU cargo flows through ports by freight type
The Port of Liverpool Seaforth Docks on the River Mersey
CO 2 intensity of sea miles compared with road miles is becoming increasingly important to many customers. Building in more resilience is a key part of wider supply chain thinking and unaccompanied trailers have a proposition here too. Rather than store goods in a warehouse, manufacturers and retailers are able to use ‘contingency stock’ at the port of entry using stand trailers and containerisation. None of this is to raise doubt about the viability of accompanied traffic. There will be cargoes and circumstances where accompanied ro-ro is the right choice, particularly on the Short
Straits. In any reasonable scenario of UK-EU future trade, this route remains a key trade corridor for UK and EU trade. Running the numbers But in these times of change and with a renewed focus on supply chain resilience, it is more important than ever that cargo owners and their supply chain partners and agents run the numbers on the variety of different options open to them.
BIFA would like to thank Tim Morris of the UK Major Ports Group for submitting this article.
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September 2021
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