Industrial park and logistics centre opened in Muuga
On May 17, Katoen Natie, a Belgian company and one of the largest logistics firms in the world, opened a 25,000 m2 warehouse complex for the management of goods to be directed to Russia and the CIS in Muuga, which, among other things, stands for the start of operations of Port of Tallinn Muuga industrial park, Port of Talinn says in its press release.
According to Mart Melles, the Managing Director of Katoen Natie Eesti AS, the Muuga logistics centre will become a gateway for goods exchange between Europe, Russia and the CIS. “We are planning to expand the Muuga logistics centre gradually: the warehouse area should double and is to reach 66,000 m2 by the end of 2015 year,” says Melles.
According to Ain Kaljurand, Chairman of the Management Board of Port of Tallinn, Katoen Natie, one of the largest logistics companies in the world, is like a quality stamp both for Estonia and Port of Tallinn. “For Muuga Harbour, the opening of the Katoen Natie’s logistics centre means a huge step towards becoming a distribution hub on the Baltic Sea. Katoen Natie is the key client of the industrial park opened today, and its example will be followed by other logistics and production companies whose buildings will rise nearby in the nearest future,” notes Kaljurand.
The new Katoen Natie’s logistics centre will be used to transport several groups of goods in the Baltic Sea region, of which cocoa products, consumer goods, plastic goods etc. are the most important. In addition to the indoor storage areas, the construction of a 600 m2 office building and a … railway section has been completed.
Katoen Natie has already started building the second 16,000 m2 warehouse, which will be finished this September. There are plans for the construction of another 25,000 m2 warehouse and 44 tanks for the handling of bulk plastic granules.
After the completion of the second and then the third phases of construction in 2015, Katoen Natie’s total warehouse capacity will amount to 66,000 m2, which will make it the largest logistics centre in Estonia. The total cost of the project reaches 30 million euros. The logistics centre will provide 60 jobs.
This is a completely environmentally safe and friendly warehouse that will not generate noise or smells when goods are processed. The processing and storage of various goods will be performed in various warehouses and special warehouse sections. Additional investments have been made in numerous alarm and fire safety devices and construction materials.
Founded in 1854 in Belgium, today Katoen Natie owns 150 logistics centres all over the world. The total capacity of all the warehouses it operates is over five million square metres. The company specialises in offering logistical solutions in a variety of fields, including the sectors of manufactured goods, automotive industry, general use products etc. Katoen Natie provides over 10,000 jobs.
Port of Tallinn is the largest cargo and passenger port complex in Estonia. Port of Tallinn consists of five harbours: Old City Harbour, Muuga Harbour, Paldiski South Harbour, Paljassaare Harbour and Saaremaa Harbour. Port of Tallinn, a state enterprise, was founded in April of 1992; in 1996 it was transformed into a public limited company with the Republic of Estonia as the sole shareholder.