20 B ULK D ISTRIBUTOR
Ports & Storage
November/December 2019
Dunkerque opens new secure corridor
I
n September, a secure access corridor for heavy goods
vehicles at Dunkerque-Port’s Cross-Channel Terminal was
inaugurated.
The access corridor was opened in the presence of Emmanuelle
Verger and Stéphane Raison, respectively chair of the supervisory
board and president of Dunkerque-Port executive board, Gilbert
Beltran, regional director of the French Customs Authorities, Jean-
Claude Charlo, managing director of DFDS Seaways France and Nike
Drinckal, director of the United Kingdom Border Force.
The new facility reinforces the safety of trucks waiting to check in.
The VIPs also inaugurated the Cross-Channels site’s drone-
monitored perimeter fence surveillance system. It is the first such
system in Europe licensed to fly drones over private sites out of
direct sight, by day and by night under the simple supervision of a
teleoperator.
Since the decision of the UK to exit the European Union,
Dunkerque-Port has made the necessary adjustments to the control
of goods and people as part of the creation of this new frontier in
Europe and has carried out other works in response to the urgency
of the situation.
For export flows ex-France these include: a third passport control
booth for the French Border Police (PAF); extension of boarding car
parks; and creation of counters to enable customs officers to carry
out tax refund formalities and process declarations.
L-r: Jean-Claude Charlo, DFDS Seaways France; Stéphane Raison, president of Dunkerque-Port
executive board; Nike Drinckal, director of the United Kingdom Border Force; Emmanuelle Verger,
chair of Dunkerque Port supervisory board; and Gilbert Beltran, French Customs
For import flows into France, they cover: allocation of premises for
customs authorities (offices, counters and support services); fitting-
out a hangar to control heavy goods vehicles; redevelopment of the
quays, traffic management and signalling systems at the exits of the
link-spans in order to sort the heavy goods vehicles and create a
waiting parking area for those subject to formalities; creation of a
tax-refund area and random control zone including offices,
recreational rooms, washroom facilities, search room, storage room
and kennels; creation of a heavy goods vehicle parking area as an
extension to the facilities of the Veterinary and Phytosanitary
Inspection Service (SIVEP) to accommodate heavy goods vehicles
subject to this type of control
Since 30 March 30, French government services – including
customs authorities, and the regional directorate for food,
agriculture and forestry (DRAAF) - have been organising themselves
to use the infrastructure created by the port 24 hours a day.
DFDS, for its part, has supplemented the information system
developed by the customs services with a computer application that
informs each driver of the ‘customs’ status of their cargo, during the
actual crossing.
As for the port of Calais and Eurotunnel, all of these facilities and
systems will be tested on 24 September 2019 for exports and
imports alike. Selected heavy goods vehicles will be given an
opportunity to test both the smart border allowing them to fill in
their customs declarations on departing from Dover, thereby
facilitating the processing of customs procedures on arrival in
France, as well as the new traffic control system at the port.
ADNOC
takes stake
in VTTI
A
bu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has bought a
stake VTTI.
Following the transaction, VTTI is now owned 10 percent by
ADNOC, 45 percent by IFM Global Infrastructure Fund, an
investment vehicle managed by IFM Investors, and 45 percent by
Vitol (both directly and through Vitol Investment Partnership II Ltd,
an investment vehicle sponsored and managed by Vitol).
VTTI owns 15 storage terminals across 14 different countries. The
network holds around 60 million barrels (9.5 million cbm) of
combined capacity, much of which is in locations that are
complementary to ADNOC’s trade flows.
The investment in VTTI provides ADNOC access to storage across
some of its key export markets such as Asia, Africa and Europe
while also securing additional facilities at the port of Fujairah, UAE,
its main hub. The transaction also significantly contributes to the
development and growth of ADNOC’s global marketing, supply and
trading platforms, providing greater access to knowledge and
capabilities that will further enable ADNOC’s growth plans.
By expanding its international storage and reach, ADNOC will
move closer to its customers, allowing it to be more agile and
respond quickly to market needs and dynamics. It will also unlock
incremental revenue, margin and cost saving opportunities from the
trading, transportation and storage of its products, giving ADNOC
better control over where, when and how its products are being
supplied to key markets and customers.
The announcement came just days after ADNOC confirmed the
successful closing of its refining and trading agreements with ENI
and OMV, under which a new trading joint venture, ADNOC Global
Trading, has been established. This will focus predominantly on the
trading of products from ADNOC Refining.
www.vitol.com
ADNOC’s investment in VTTI provides it access to storage across some of its key export markets