The year in brief
The economy: Green Cargo met the economic downturn head-on with a comprehensive savings plan to boost efficiency within its operations. The goal is to reach cost savings of over SEK 600 million, half of which was achieved already in 2009. However, the struggling economy still dragged the full-year results sharply down into the negative, SEK -223 million, even though the business operated at a profit during the second half of the year.
New business: Green Cargo set new records for new business in 2009, signing almost 500 new transport agreements. Of these agreements, 28 were with companies that had not previously transported freight by rail. Extended agreements were signed with a number of companies, including Volvo Logistics, Outokumpu Stainless, Svenska Shell, Trätåg and LKAB's rail company, MTAB.
New Chairman: In April, the Annual General Meeting appointed a new Chairman to Green Cargo's Board of Directors, Håkan Buskhe. Håkan Buskhe has served as President and CEO of E.ON Nordic. New CEO: At the end of June 2009, Sören Belin resigned as CEO of Green Cargo and was replaced by interim CEO Lennart Pihl. In November 2009, Green Cargo's Board of Directors announced that Mikael Stöhr will become the new CEO of Green Cargo starting 19 April 2010. Mikael Stöhr comes most recently from the Axel Johnson Group.
COOP trains: On 1 September, Coop trains began to run between Helsingborg and Stockholm. Green Cargo's solution, which entails loading trains with Coop trailers, is a new, large assignment in the retail industry and it is gaining considerable attention. As 18,000 trailers take the train instead of the E4 highway, Coop has significantly decreased its carbon footprint.
Minister visits Green Cargo: In September, Swedish Minister for Communications, Åsa Torstensson, visited our Sustainable Logistics seminar and handed out Green Cargo Climate Certificates to 25 customers whose transports via Green Cargo meet extremely high standards regarding environmental impact. Coop was named Climate Comet of the Year for 2009, an award recognising companies that, given the conditions they operate under, make significant improvements to the environmental impact of their logistics.
ITS World Congress: Green Cargo was one of the main partners of the ITS World Congress in Stockholm in September 2009. In cooperation with two other main partners – Scania and Volvo – Green Cargo developed an almost carbon dioxide-free solution for the transports of the clothing retailer, KappAhl, between Gothenburg and its stores in Stockholm.
Energy from the forest: Starting in October, Green Cargo began to transport forest fuels for Söderenergi. Not only will the newly constructed, biofuel-driven combined heat and power plant in Södertälje, Igelsta, use environmentally friendly fuel, but its transports will also be environmentally friendly.
Award for Logistics: The Ecologistic Award was awarded to Green Cargo, AFAB and the Port of Gävle for a rail solution that transports aircraft fuel to Arlanda. Since its inception, the solution has replaced 50,000 road transports with its own trains between Gävle – Brista, which is located just outside of Arlanda.
Top ranking: Swedish magazine, Veckans affärer, recognised Green Cargo in the fall of 2009. We were nominated for the Green Capitalist of the Year award and were the only transport company to receive a spot in the magazine's Top 40 list of equal opportunity companies.
Female drivers: Green Cargo is training 10 new locomotive drivers for ore transports in the north. Seven of these trainees are women, and, in Kiruna, 25 percent of the locomotive drivers are women.
Warehouse full of books: Green Cargo Logistics won assignments in a new segment: Books and Media. Berling Media and Akademibokhandeln became third-party logistics customers during the year. Green Cargo Logistics had its best year since its start and recorded a 15 percent increase in profitability.
Investments: Green Cargo primarily invested in new, modernised locomotives during the year as well as an additional 50,000 square meters of warehouse space for its growing third-party logistics business. Gross investments in 2009 totalled just under SEK 1 billion.
Quality and safety: Despite weather-related problems that occurred toward the end of the year, Green Cargo's freight trains delivered 95 percent punctuality to customers for the third consecutive year. Punctuality is measured for all national wagons and requires that the wagon be delivered to the customer within the agreed hour. Traffic safety reached an all-time high and the freight train operations have almost cut accident costs in half since 2003.
More women becoming locomotive drivers.
Aircraft fuel transports win recognition.
95 percent punctuality to the customer
Green Cargo's delivery rate within the promised hour, measured for national freight wagon arrival to customer
Increased safety
Green Cargo Rail's costs for incidents and accidents, SEK million
Accident costs in the rail operations, SEK million, includes everything from small incidents to derailments and collisions.
Transports and full-time equivalents
Green Cargo Rail's gross tonne kilometres and full-time equivalents per quarter (index Q1 07)
Gross tonne kilometre: Load weight plus wagon and locomotive weight multiplied by actual transportation distance.
Green Cargo's national transports are an approved Good Environmental Choice