Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC) has boosted its capacity to service the eastern hinterland of Antwerp. The company said that the is has added 15 electric locomotives to its Medway branch in Belgium increasing the capability at the Northwest Continent terminal. 

“MSC continues to invest at a European level via its MEDWAY arm to strengthen its intermodal offering, improving its capacity to serve clients not only with its core deep-sea solutions, but also inland. Improving these areas provides our customers with a portfolio of services and solutions designed to simplify and support their supply chain,” Salvatore Prudente, Executive Director of MEDWAY, commented.

“Our teams of experts are constantly monitoring both customer needs and market trends and we see a great deal of sense in investing in our intermodal capabilities, as customers are increasingly encouraged to move overland cargo by rail,” Prudente said.

Sustainable cross-border transport

The Vectron MS locomotives, manufactured by Siemens Mobility, have a a top speed of 160 km/h.

“With their record for reliability and flexibility, our Vectron locomotives enable sustainable cross-border freight transport throughout Europe,” said Albrecht Neumann, CEO Rolling Stock, Siemens Mobility.

The new locomotives will be deployed within an East-West geographical scope, improving connections and capacity between Belgium, Germany, Netherlands, Austria and Poland, and landlocked central and Eastern areas such as Hungary, Czech Republic and Slovakia, providing customers with a more flexible, efficient and sustainable way of moving cargo inland.

Falling under MSC’s inland logistics partner Medlog, Medway Belgium operates as a licensed freight rail operator in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, and Austria and began operations in July 2022. Medway is currently a rail operator in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, Portugal, Spain and Italy and owns rolling stock, operated by partners, in Türkiye and India.