UOTC requests the intervention of the Government to avoid the loss of traffic in land intermodal 13/01/22

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Source: https://diariodetransporte.com/2022/01/uotc-solicita-la-intervencion-del-gobierno-para-evitar-la-perdida-de-traficos-en-intermodal-terrestre/

 

Editorial Office.- The Union of Comodal Transport Operators (UOTC), belonging to ASTIC, has issued a press release in which it explains its reasons for asking the Government for an urgent intervention to avoid the loss of traffic of 500,000 tons in land intermodal.

 

In relation to the new fare conditions announced by Renfe Mercancías for 2022 , for multi-client trains, coming into force on Saturday, January 15, 2022, the UOTC wishes to communicate the following:

 

1.-The Ministry of Transport, Mobility and Urban Agenda (MITMA) is the head of the management of ADIF, Renfe Operadora and Renfe Mercancías.

 

2.- The Ministry and its Minister, Raquel Sánchez, have publicly stated their commitment to promoting freight transport by rail. Likewise, the President of Renfe, Isaías Táboas, has done it.

 

3.- 2021 has been the European Year of the Railway.

 

4.- The MITMA has precisely closed the year 2021 with new tariff conditions in Renfe Mercancías for 2022, which are going to expel, according to UOTC estimates, 500,000 tons of merchandise out of land intermodality.

 

5.- A part of the increases is due to the effect of the increase in energy costs and another part, even greater, corresponds to unilaterally breaking the tariff conditions that had been applied to any client.

 

6.- In the new conditions of 2022, all containers are charged as loaded, and the "empty container" fee is eliminated. There is no country in Europe that has adopted a similar measure.

 

7.- The figures are exorbitant. There are actual cases of net final increases of over 68% in some traffic ratios going laden and returning empty.

 

8.- The conditions are terribly detrimental to the continuity of all special container traffic, especially tanks, and fundamentally dangerous goods. This action by Renfe Mercancías and MITMA would have very serious consequences in the transport of dangerous goods, if it is maintained by MITMA.

 

9.- UOTC has expressed, at all times, and until the end, its willingness to negotiate on behalf of users, operators and carriers.

 

10.- UOTC has requested by letter to the Minister Raquel Sánchez her intervention to avoid the loss of these traffics of 500,000 tons in land intermodal, which are not recoverable later. The freight market is very special and is not similar to other rail markets.

 

11.- UOTC, in defense of the interests of its associates, agreed, in its Extraordinary General Assembly, in case no consensus solutions were found, to exercise all legal actions that could correspond to them, counting among them, a complaint before the Commercial Courts , complaint to the CNMC, collection of signatures, etc.

 

12.- In 2007, Renfe Mercancías also unilaterally modified the conditions that had been applied. UOTC warned, then, as evidenced by the newspaper archives, of the terrible damage that this behavior would entail, estimating that more than 500,000 tons would be lost. This was the case and this was confirmed by the results, which are evidenced in the “UOTC Index” graph, drawn up periodically by the UOTC. The defense of the interests of the Comodal Transport Operators forced UOTC to take legal action that was won in 2010 by UOTC, while Renfe Mercancías was ordered to pay the costs.

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