PSA Baltics, a subsidiary of PSA International, a major global port operator, has signed an agreement to acquire an 85% majority stake in Loconi International, one of Poland’s leading intermodal operators, from the publicly traded Polish freight forwarder ATC Cargo.
This move aims to develop new rail products to support PSA’s European container hubs, thereby offering its customers additional options to execute the modal shift from road to rail. With this acquisition, PSA intends to enhance hinterland connections from the Baltic Hub Container Terminal in Gdansk, Poland and extend the port’s reach into new markets in Central and Eastern Europe.
The transaction is still subject to approval from the relevant authorities, according to a statement.
Established in 2011, Loconi provides logistics solutions for shipping companies and freight forwarders that integrate rail transport, last mile road transport and depot services for containerised cargo. Loconi runs 220 trains every month across five corridors in Poland and handles approximately 250,000 TEUs each year. These corridors connect the ports of Gdansk and Gdynia on Poland’s northern shore with its two independently operated rail terminals in Warsaw and Radomsko in the centre of Poland, and five third-party terminals in Gadki and Poznan Franowo in the West, and Katy Wroclawskie, Dabrowa Gornicza and Slawkow in the South. Earlier this year, Loconi launched two additional corridors to Lodz in Central Poland and Oswiecim in Southern Poland.
Baltic Hub,a joint venture between PSA, the Polish Development Fund (PFR) and IFM Investment Fundm, is an expanding deepsea terminal in Gdansk. Its rail terminal currently handles more than 500 trains each month, providing container transport services through a number of independent partners within Poland with extensive connections across Central and Eastern Europe. With the acquisition of Loconi, Baltic Hub is poised to supplement its rail product offerings originating from Gdansk, thereby fostering greater operational efficiencies and streamlined services to its partners, while continuing to operate as a multi-user rail terminal.
