Lidl's Tailwind to launch direct shipping from Ctg to Europe

Germany's Tailwind Shipping Lines has announced the launch of a direct container shipping line between Chattogram port and Europe, with a specific focus on the transportation of textile goods, according to a recent statement from the carrier.

The new service, named the Tiger Express service (TEX service) after the Bengal tiger, will be the second European shipping line after an Italian shipping company which launched direct shipping service from Chattogram port in February last year.

The service is expected to have a fast transit time of fewer than 20 days between Chattogram and Barcelona, which will help cut down time and costs for traders. The new shipping line will also call on smaller ports in both Barcelona and the Dutch port town of Moerdijk, enabling goods to be loaded onto trucks quickly and transported directly to their specific destinations.

"Owing to the ships we deploy, we can reach the region without any intermediate stops or transshipment," says Wolf Tiedemann, board member at Lidl Stiftung & Co KG responsible for logistics and also managing director of Tailwind Shipping Lines.

"Especially thanks to direct connection between Bangladesh and Europe, this will represent a huge increase in efficiency, which we will also use to boost the reliability of the supply chains for our customers," he said, adding that this kind of smaller service also ensures greater proximity to customers and the ability to quickly meet their requirements.

Tailwind Shipping Lines, a subsidiary of Lidl International, which runs a discount retailer chain in over 11,000 stores across Europe and the United States, will offer shipping freight for Lidl goods, as well as for customers from the fashion and textile sectors, with other customers also able to derive the benefits of the service.

The company said the new service will represent a huge increase in efficiency, which will be used to boost the reliability of the supply chains for customers.

 "We've got all the permissions from the port authority and Tailwind will launch direct service at the end of the next month," Nazneen Sultana, managing director of Unitrans Container Limited, the local agent of Tailwind, told The Business Standard on Saturday.

According to shipping industry officials, 40% of Bangladesh's import and export goods are transported from Chattogram to Colombo port, while the remaining 60% go through Singapore, Malaysia's Port Klang, and Tanjung Pelepas. Chattogram Port handles 92% of the country's import-export trade alongside 98% of container shipments.

Of Bangladesh's $52 billion exports in FY22, garments accounted for nearly 82%, with over 50% of exports going to Europe in that fiscal year, according to BGMEA data. The direct connection between Bangladesh and Europe offered by Tailwind's TEX service is expected to represent a significant boost in efficiency for these exports, as well as for other customers using the service.

Chattogram Port Authority Secretary Md Omar Farooq said the authorities are encouraging direct shipping service as it takes only 15-20 days to reach destination countries instead of at least 40-45 days through transshipment ports.

He also said shipment cost will be reduced significantly and importers can expect their goods to reach them faster.