Samskip: "We see APM Terminals Gothenburg as a long-term partner"

Since April 2023, the Iceland-owned shipping company Samskip has been calling at APM Terminals in Gothenburg, marking the start of a new short-sea offering from the Port of Gothenburg. We met with Kenn Mellgren, operational manager at Samskip, to find out more about the first half of the year at APM Terminals and what is important to them and their customers during the initial tender season.

For six months, Samskip has been calling at APM Terminals on a weekly basis, for onward travel to Aarhus, Runavik in the Faroe Islands and on to Reykjavik, before arriving in Rotterdam four days later.

What was it that caused you to redirect your route via APM Terminals in Gothenburg?
At Samskip, we see APM Terminals in Gothenburg as a strategic and long-term partner. There are several important factors that contributed to this decision. First and foremost, the excellent rail connections from Gothenburg and out into the country, combined with an extensive route network and a wide range of services within the port cluster. The strategic logistics location is also of great importance, as it enables us to quickly reach our customers.

In your opinion, how has the first year been?
There has been a certain adjustment period for learning new systems and processes in going from one of Sweden’s smaller ports to the largest port in the Nordic region. At the same time, we have had a very positive and open dialogue with APM Terminals to tackle the initial challenges. So far, the handling of our vessels has been smooth and we have always received the service we need within our time window. We are therefore convinced that this is the right long-term solution for us.

Both APM Terminals Gothenburg and Aarhus are included in your loop. Do you see any benefits in the fact that the same operator operates both ports?
Nordic cooperation is a major advantage, and we believe that the benefits will be even clearer once everything has fully stabilised. It will give us the opportunity to easily change the call dates between ports if necessary, and it will also facilitate communication and cooperation between Denmark and Sweden.

Tender season is in full swing. What is especially important to you and your customers right now?
For our customers, both climate efficiency and price are decisive factors, and in this respect, rail plays a central role as it meets both of these criteria. Against this background, APM Terminals in Gothenburg is an extremely important partner for us. As a shipping company, it is also extremely important that the ports we cooperate with have sufficient capacity for servicing our vessels within the specified time.

What is does your future look like?
Now that the summer holidays are over, we look forward to working with APM Terminals to firm up more long-term plans. Among other things, this means trying to increase the volume of transport from road to rail as much as possible. The railway lines that we currently use from Gothenburg to Jönköping and Älmhult have worked well. In the future, we hope for a railway line between Gothenburg and Oslo, which would be a fantastic development.