Logistics operators in Poland recorded a good start in 2018. The summary of the first quarter of the year seems very promising. Considerable growth is recorded by PKP Cargo, OT Logistics, and MLP Group. On what did they benefit the most?
In Q1 2018, PKP Cargo’s revenue from sales grew by more than one-tenth for. The company is the largest rail freight operator in Poland and the second largest in the EU. Turnover of more than 281 million euro contributed to almost 8,4 million euro in profit (the carrier recorded a loss of 235 thousand euro during the first quarter of 2017).
Cargo weight transported by PKP reached nearly 30 million tonnes, about 7.7 percent more than a year earlier.
The first quarter was very successful for PKP Cargo. It resulted from the implementation of a consistent development strategy which we will continue in the following months as well. I hope it will allow us to achieve results better than those forecasted for 2018 – says Czesław Warsewicz, President at PKP Cargo.
Promising prospects on the industrial market
MLP Group conducts a completely different kind of business. The company is a major warehouse space developer. The Group currently runs the following logistics parks: MLP Pruszków I and II, MLP Poznań, MLP Lublin, MLP Teresin, MLP Wrocław, MLP Czeladź and MLP Gliwice. And this kind of activity yielded quite significant profits – 1 million euro.
MLP Group reached a revenue of 6.5 million euro, nearly one-fifth more than the year before. Furthermore, 0.5 million sqm of space was leased, which is about 25% more than in the first quarter of 2017.
Also, in this case, this year’s profit is particularly promising in view of the losses recorded in the first quarter of last year amounting to almost 3.7 million euro.
Positive influence on the recorded result is attributable to the shift in investment real estate valuation. For the first three months of 2018, the value increased by almost 4 million euro to amount to 281.4 million euro by the end of March. The greatest impact had the expenditure incurred due to the development of new parks. The increase in the real estate value was also affected by the weakening of the Polish currency, leading to an increase in the fair value of investment properties by 2.5 million euro – explains MLP Group.
In this case, the prospects are promising as well. At the end of the first quarter of 2018 already 39,000 sqm of space was under construction. It is utmost necessary, because the vacancy rate, which takes into account both the existing and space under construction, has been recently at an extremely low level (approx. 2 percent).
We increase the scale of our operations by expanding our logistic parks and launching new projects. This year, our results already indicate revenues from foreign operations on the German market and soon on the Romanian market as well. Expansion in Germany is a priority for us and it will have an essential impact on the results in the upcoming months – underlines Radosław T. Krochta, President at MLP Group.
Expansion to Belarus and the Balkans
OT Logistics capital group, the largest port operator in Poland and leader in inland waterway transport in Central and Eastern Europe, also records significant profits. Its main business segments include port services, forwarding, rail services and inland waterways, along with the other transport.
Revenues of nearly 53 million euro were recorded due to an increase in cargo handling at OT Port Świnoujście, amongst others. Q1 2018 marked the company’s expansion on foreign markets. Numerous companies were found to support customers in Belarus and the Balkans, to increase participation in any transshipment of cargo streams flowing down the New Silk Route from China and build the North-South transport channel between the Baltic Sea and the Adriatic Sea.
We also gradually implement our strategy that assumes gaining the leading position in the TSL industry in our region. The creation of new companies in the neighboring markets will allow us to improve the quality and comfort of services for our customers, which should translate into an increased scale of operations through the acquisition of new customers. We are also glad due to positive effects of the consolidation of companies incorporated to the Group in recent quarters. This is seen clearly in the logistics segment, where a 75% growth in revenue and margins was recorded – asserts Zbigniew Nowik, President at OT Logistics.
The largest segment of OT Logistics – shipping, recorded a 9% increase in revenue to external customers. Increased demand for transport services from the construction sector and the increase in container freight rates was of significant importance as well. Revenue in the transport segment increased by 16%.
Photo: PKP Cargo