The tragic development in Ukraine will affect the transport business

Many foreign trucks are operated by drivers from third countries including drivers from Ukraine.

After the Ukrainian government has convened all personnel of the reserve aged 18 to 60 years to join the military services immediately, we see that many drivers return home to Ukraine.

We expect this to have an influence on the operation in a market already lacking capacity.

We hope for your understanding of this situation which is outside FREJA’s control. We encourage you to stay in close contact with your usual contact person in FREJA regarding the development.

 

Because of Danish holidays, there will be some changes in departure times from several countries.

Click here for more information

 

SDK FREJA at stand 2J61!

As the largest event in the world for the project cargo and breakbulk industry, Breakbulk Europe is the right event to have SDK FREJA’s first official outing as one company. The event in May draws around 10,000 professionals to Rotterdam from more than 120 countries.

[caption id="attachment_42703" align="alignleft" width="150"] Lars Jespersen.[/caption]

– We are delighted to showcase for the first time on a live event our truly broad portfolio and all the opportunities we provide to our current customers and our future customers, says Lars Jespersen, CEO of SDK Shipping.

Although the merger in 2020 was widely reported, the CEO of FREJA, Ulrik Rasmussen believes that Breakbulk Europe is a good event to present all the services SDK FREJA can offer.

[caption id="attachment_1210" align="alignright" width="150"] Ulrik Rasmussen.[/caption]

– The range of our portfolio is so wide; I believe many of our current customers will be pleasantly surprised of the possibilities SDK FREJA as a full-service logistics and shipping company can offer with local knowledge, regional setup, and a Global Network!

Breakbulk Europe will be held in Rotterdam at Rotterdam Ahoy, adjacent to the Port of Rotterdam.

The venue Rotterdam Ahoy will include six halls offering an additional 5,000 square meters to comply with the pent-up demand from the industry to meet as one after a two-year event hiatus. Breakbulk Europe will be held 17–19th May 2022.

Breakbulk Europe has become the global hub for the industrial project supply chain, including the world’s foremost manufacturers, oil & gas companies, EPCs, carriers, ports, logistics firms, specialized transporters, and related service providers.

A broad range of services for shipping and logistics

SDK FREJA is one of the few independent and privately owned local mid-sized logistics and shipping companies. SDK FREJA has approx. 200,000 m2 multi harbour terminals in Denmark and Sweden, more than 3,000 trailers on the roads daily as well as a fleet of coasters operated by SDK.

The main activities of SDK FREJA include freight forwarding within Road, Air & Sea, Project, Logistics, as well as Stevedoring, Agency, Chartering, Liner, Cruise and Customs services.

The company offers specialist logistics solutions within Healthcare, Warehousing and Refrigeration and is locally based in Northern Europe including strategic positions in China and Spain. FREJA Transport & Logistics has offices in seven different countries, namely Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Poland, Holland, and China.

SDK FREJA is part of the family owned USTC Group with activities covering supply of bunkers to the shipping industry, tanker shipping, door-to-door logistics, risk management, IT activities and sustainable energy solutions. The USTC Group is continuously evolving, currently with offices in 38 countries and 4,000 employees worldwide. Each and every one supporting you 24/7/365.

Find us, check the Breakbulk Europe exhibitor list!

Despite a year marked by supply chain challenges and the difficult task of merging two companies into one, SDK FREJA has delivered their best result ever, almost quadrupling the previous year’s result and reporting a revenue of more than DKK 6 billion along with an EBT of DKK 244 million.

The shipping- and logistics company SDK FREJA presents their first, complete 12-month report after last year’s merger. The company has succeeded in increasing their revenue to more than DKK 6 billion, which more than doubles last year’s revenue, corresponding to an increase of 128 percent.

SDK FREJA’s annual report finalizes a turbulent year with a COVID-19 pandemic that has yet to fully release the market, a new war in Europe, new legislation from EU and huge pressure on global supply lines, meaning that the shipping and logistics businesses have had a more complicated year than ever before.

“In spite of a global shipping- and logistics business marked by another year of continuous challenges, we, across the Group, have seen clear progress in both our top- and bottom lines, which we owe to the huge effort from our skilled coworkers,” Says Søren Gran Hansen, Group CEO of SDK FREJA and further elaborates:

“Both strategic acquisitions and a continued investment in our IT platform has increased the effectiveness of our internal business protocols and strengthened our solutions to our clients.”

With this year’s result, however, SDK FREJA has achieved a ten-fold growth in EBT over a five-year period, reaching DKK 244 million. This economic ballast will now secure SDK FREJAs strong position when continuing the company’s growth strategy in coming years, and allow for expansion, acquisitions, and growth.

SDK FREJA united in growth

In two of the group’s business units, SDK and FREJA respectively, this year has presented equal parts opportunities and challenges, placing considerable demands on the complexity of the company’s solutions for individual client needs.

”The assignments within stevedoring, agency and chartering have been marked by a change in the regular transport patterns. The markets have increased in complexity, which has demanded that we have had to continuously adapt. Apart from this, we’ve seen highly increased pressure on both harbors and stock facilities, as a natural result of an increase in global economic growth. This year’s result, however, indicates that we’ve succeeded in this task, and we attribute a large part of this to the excellent cooperation between our coworkers and our clients,” says Lars Jespersen, Group CEO SDK.

Although FREJA has experienced the same market challenges, they, too, have succeeded in creating the opportunity to develop and adapt their business practices and competencies.

”This year has been both challenging and eventful. The lack of capacity within both road-, ocean- and air transport as well as stock facilities has challenged our clients’ supply chain to the limit, which has meant that we had to rethink processes and at the same time be incredible flexible while maintaining a constant dialogue with our customers to find the optimum solution. Our coworkers’ skill in continuously securing extra capacity as well as adapting to a volatile market is a considerable part and cause of our growth,” says Ulrik Rasmussen, Group CEO FREJA

Apart from the successful integration of SDK Logistics and FREJA, which has resulted in larger synergies than expected, the previous fiscal year has also seen the addition of Swedish IRT Logistics and Norwegian Thoresen Transport to FREJA, which has strengthened the company’s Nordic market position.

Acquisitions create growth

The proactive acquisition strategy for SDK FREJA is part of a wider, future strategy that can be traced back to the company ownership; the family-owned United Shipping and Trading Company (USTC). A strong approach that secures the future growth of SDK FREJA.

“Our family ownership’s backing for acquisitions secures us, in the group, both the mandate and backing for a continued business strategy based on further strategic acquisitions. Last year we merged FREJA with SDK Logistics, and ever since then we’ve continued our dedicated focus on completing value-adding acquisitions, which is why we continually evaluate potential acquisition candidates. It is a cornerstone in our strategy for developing SDK FREJA,” says Søren Gran.

With last year’s purchase of 49% of stock in the Danish DSH and Nordic Waste, SDK FREJA has further added a new economic leg to the company portfolio. Nordic Waste thus specializes in cleaning polluted dirt with the purpose of using as much as possible of the cleansed material directly or in newly developed products primarily for the construction business – including infrastructural projects.

This year’s strong financial result, along with SDK FREJA’s strategic expansions through acquisitions of both new and existing business areas, jointly give the company a strong starting point for the coming years.

 

For further information please contact:

Thomas Jakobsgaard, Head of Strategy and M&A, SDK FREJA.

M +45 29 93 98 21, e-mail tja@sdkgroup.com

To all customers of FREJA Transport & Logistics, regarding increased congestion on European terminals.

We would like to inform you that with increasing congestion on European port terminals and overall dwell times continuing to rise, more terminals are attempting to address long-stay container issues through a variety of measures. These include moving containers to separate storage areas and/or imposing additional one-time or daily charges for laden long-stay boxes.

While we are negotiating charge acceptance with our Shipping Lines, please be aware that if we are forced to accept any charges, we, unfortunately, must charge this back to you as our customer. Because many of the charges are of an emergency nature, they may be issued on short notice.

For further questions please refer to your local FREJA office/representative, where we can inform you of any changes that may occur on your shipment.

Best Regards

FREJA Transport & Logistics

Read in Danish

 

Dear reader

Welcome to FREJA’s second newsletter in 2022, where we would like to share what is happening in our part of the transport & logistics world.

The financial year 2021/22 was a milestone for SDK FREJA with the company’s first consolidated financial report and the best result to date.

FREJA has expanded its online services. We are proud to announce that now you can track your shipments by air or sea with higher precision and easy accessibility.

FREJA is expanding its endeavors with a new location in Herning. The office opened on 01.06.2022 and it is already functional and operational.

In July 2020, the EU adopted the so-called EU Road Package, which lays down rules for remuneration and working conditions for truck drivers. A recent development (13th of July, 2022) has us continuously observing the changes and impacts of the mobility package as the implementation continues.

We thank you for your interest in our newsletter and wish you a good read.

Sincerely
Jan Sunde

SDK FREJAs Annual Report

The shipping- and logistics company SDK FREJA presents their first, complete 12-month report after last year’s merger. The company has succeeded in increasing their revenue to more than DKK 6 billion, which more than doubles last year’s revenue, corresponding to an increase of 128 percent.

SDK FREJA’s annual report finalizes a turbulent year with a COVID-19 pandemic that has yet to fully release the market, a new war in Europe, new legislation from EU and huge pressure on global supply lines, meaning that the shipping and logistics businesses have had a more complicated year than ever before.

“In spite of a global shipping- and logistics business marked by another year of continuous challenges, we, across the Group, have seen clear progress in both our top- and bottom lines, which we owe to the huge effort from our skilled coworkers,” Says Søren Gran Hansen, Group CEO of SDK FREJA and further elaborates:

“Both strategic acquisitions and a continued investment in our IT platform has increased the effectiveness of our internal business protocols and strengthened our solutions to our clients.”

With this year’s result, however, SDK FREJA has achieved a ten-fold growth in EBT over a five-year period, reaching DKK 244 million. This economic ballast will now secure SDK FREJAs strong position when continuing the company’s growth strategy in coming years, and allow for expansion, acquisitions, and growth.

For more information about the financial result of 21/22, you can read the full press release here:

Expanding offices and partnerships in Denmark

FREJA is expanding its endeavors with a new location in Herning. The office opened on 01.06.2022 and it is already functional and operational. This office will expand and reinforce our customer engagement as they will provide sales- and forwarding expertise along with continuous service to our customers.

The opening of an office in Herning underlines our ambition to believe in local engagement and localized workforces. This applies to customer, employee, and partner values, as we consistently invest in decentralized offices.

FREJAs local Senior Account Manager at the new office, Peter Stensfeldt, believes that to be a part of a local industry you need commitment and presence in the local activities.

Because of this, we are proud to announce that FREJA will expand its partnership with FC Midtjylland and Herning Bluefox. We are excited to continue this collaboration as we believe their values align with the values of FREJA Transport & Logistics. FREJA will continue our partnership, and expand it as we seek to engage more in the local activities in and around Herning.

With more than 35 years of experience in transport and logistics, FREJA can offer professional advice and sparring as well as create solutions based on the customer’s needs.

FREJA looks forward to establishing close customer relationships in Herning, and we aim to create an even stronger foundation in Jutland as the customers’ preferred full-service provider by road, sea, and air.

If you want to know more about how FREJA can help you, feel free to reach out to Peter Stensfeldt or Franz Andersen.

FREJAs Track & Trace services for Air & Sea transportation have expanded

FREJA has expanded its online services. We are proud to announce that now you can track your shipments by air or sea with higher precision and easy accessibility. Now with extended and precise information about your shipment on Air and Sea freight.

To use our Track & Trace service, please head over to the following webpage, where you can enter your Air – MAWB no. or Sea – Container no.

Click here for instant access.

After entering your information a screen prompt will pop up with the information about your shipment immediately.

Get instant information about your shipment. No need for a user ID or password. Just insert your tracking ID in our formula to view the latest updates on your shipment – fast, easy, and convenient.

If you have any questions about the functionality or accessibility, please reach out to your FREJA representative, and we will provide you with the necessary information for you to access updates and information about your shipments.

The EU commission insists that the return of trucks act also applies to trailers.

The latest Mobility Package regulations, which included the 8-weekly mandatory return of vehicles, were approved by the European Parliament in the summer of 2020, with effect from February 2022.

The Mobility Package included the mandatory return truck rule, which states tat a vehicle must return once every eight weeks to the location from where the business is operated. However, the legislation should also be applied to trailers and semi-trailers, according to a Q&A sheet that the EC just released.

This is not set in stone, as Transport en Logistiek Nederland objects to this explanation and interpretation. TLN contests this and believes that this action does nothing to further the objectives of the new European transportation regulations. As they stress: “Trailers are basically the same as containers and they are not returned every eight weeks,” 

FREJA Transport & Logistics is monitoring this development intensively as the conclusion could have a major impact on the capacity available in the market. When we can say something with certainty, we will inform our partners and customers with great haste. Once we know the details.

In July 2020, the EU passed the mobility package that determines the salaries and working conditions for truck drivers. Parts of the mobility package were already implemented in 2020 and 2021. From the 2^nd of February, 2022 another part of the package come into effect. This involves the part of the agreement that mentions the harmonization of salaries.

We find it positive that the EU has a common wish to improve the conditions for drivers and create better salaries- and living conditions, but it is not without extra costs. Specifically, better conditions for drivers and increased taxes and administration are the main contributors to the increase of prices in the future.

SDK FREJA at Breakbulk Rotterdam 2022

As the largest event in the world for the project cargo and breakbulk industry, Breakbulk Europe was the right event to have SDK FREJA’s first official outing as one company. The event in May drew around 10,000 professionals to Rotterdam from more than 120 countries.

Breakbulk Europe has become the global hub for the industrial project supply chain, including the world’s foremost manufacturers, oil & gas companies, EPCs, carriers, ports, logistics firms, specialized transporters, and related service providers.

– We were delighted to showcase for the first time on a live event our truly broad portfolio and all the opportunities we provide to our current customers and our future customers, says Lars Jespersen, CEO of SDK Shipping.

Although the merger in 2020 was widely reported, the CEO of FREJA, Ulrik Rasmussen believes that Breakbulk Europe was a good event to present all the services SDK FREJA can offer.

– The range of our portfolio is so wide; I believe many of our current customers will be pleasantly surprised by the possibilities SDK FREJA as a full-service logistics and shipping company can offer with local knowledge, regional setup, and a Global Network! Ulrik Rasmussen, CEO of FREJA Transport & Logistics A/S

The company offers specialized logistics solutions in Healthcare, Warehousing, and Refrigeration and is locally based in Northern Europe including strategic positions in China and Spain. FREJA Transport & Logistics has offices in seven different countries, namely Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Poland, Holland, and China.

SDK FREJA is part of the family-owned USTC Group with activities covering the supply of bunkers to the shipping industry, tanker shipping, door-to-door logistics, risk management, IT activities, and sustainable energy solutions. The USTC Group is continuously evolving, currently with offices in 38 countries and 4,000 employees worldwide. Each and every one supporting you 24/7/365.

FREJA has expanded its online services. We are proud to announce that now you can track your shipments by air or sea with higher precision and easy accessibility. Now with extended and precise information about your shipment on Air and Sea freight.

To use our Track & Trace service, please head over to the following webpage, where you can enter your Air – MAWB no. or Sea – Container no.

Click here for instant access.

After entering your information a screen prompt will pop up with the information about your shipment immediately.

Get instant information about your shipment. No need for a user ID or password. Just insert your tracking ID in our formula to view the latest updates on your shipment – fast, easy, and convenient.

If you have any questions about the functionality or accessibility, please reach out to your FREJA representative, and we will provide you with the necessary information for you to access updates and information about your shipments.

The Danish-owned shipping and logistics company SDK FREJA formalises their new ambitions within the sustainability agenda as they target climate footprint and people in the first collective sustainability report since the merger between SDK and FREJA in 2021.

In their first ever sustainability report, the family-owned SDK FREJA focuses on forming the basis for future work with social and environmental sustainability. Aiming to direct a data-driven and conscious effort to move in a more sustainable and responsible direction in the future, the report divides the different business areas within the recently merged company. The purpose is to prioritize efforts that ensure the maximum impact possible in the areas, where a real difference can be made.

“Sustainability has been on everybody’s lips in our business for many years. Reducing our climate footprint and securing a wider diversity in our employee ranks are not only crucial to the survival of our business but for the entire industry. Through our efforts to improve our environmental and social impact, we have constructed an ESG framework and established the baselines required to move ahead measurably and transparently with our sustainability commitments,” says Søren Gran Hansen, Group CEO of SDK FREJA and adds:

“In cooperation with the consultancy agency Deloitte, we have identified 12 topics within ESG where we intend to put intensive effort behind. These include employee retention, reduction of CO2 emissions, further strengthened compliance and strong governance.”

A united Executive Management consisting of Lars Jespersen, CEO of SDK, Ulrik Rasmussen, CEO of FREJA, and Søren Gran Hansen, Group CEO of SDK FREJA are behind the launch of the sustainability report and driving the important development of the ESG focus areas.

Specifically, SDK FREJA plans to dedicate their effort to reduce the company’s Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 60 percent by 2040, keep employee turnover under 15 percent, already maintaining a 12.5 percent turnover in 2020/21, and to train all SDK FREJA employees in the Group’s Code of Conduct (CoC), GDPR, and IT-security in 2022/23.

The shipping- and logistics company SDK FREJA was established at the turn of the year 2020/2021 in a merger between the SDK and FREJA. Ahead of the merger, FREJA had published several annual CSR reports and consequently, sustainability reporting is a natural step for the now unified company.

Framework forms the basis of development

Establishing formal business procedures in the work with sustainability is key to the development SDK FREJA face in the coming years. Apart from the considerable effort required to report on especially climate impact, the task involving working on the company’s joint sustainability goals also forms the basis of increasing coherence across the SDK FREJA organization and the different business entities.

As part of SDK FREJA’s objectives in their work with climate impact, among other things, SDK FREJA have committed to reduce Scope 3 emissions by 50 percent in 2040, corresponding to more than 460.000 tonnes of CO2. The company’s Scope 3 emissions currently comprise 97.3 percent of SDK FREJA’s collective CO2 footprint, and the work to reduce this will therefore be crucial for SDK FREJA’s total impact.

“SDK FREJA consider the work on our sustainability report as a good and solid starting point from which we can establish both frameworks and concrete goals to work within and towards. Among other initiatives, we intend to use the financial year 2022/2023 to establish milestones for our company’s reduction targets, building a decarbonization roadmap, where some of the areas that we can already now influence are such as empty haulage and utilization of load capacity, which will result in fewer trucks on the road,” says Eric Clausen, Head of ESG and Quality.

These targets place high demands on the utilization of synergy effects and require strong backing to support the transition.

The ownership fully supports SDK FREJA

The launch of SDK FREJA’s first sustainability report is an important step for the global Group towards a unified and streamlined approach to sustainability and decency. And the work with sustainability in SDK FREJA is not an isolated effort. The ownership in A/S United Shipping and Trading Company (USTC) fully supports the work and the direction taken by the shipping and logistics company.

“The work with sustainability is an enormous task for a company such as ours operating in several countries and various types of businesses. For this reason, it is essential for us to have the full support of our ownership to invest time and resources in sustainability initiatives,” says Eric Clausen.

SDK FREJA have identified core sustainability areas that are aligned with the overarching goals set forth by the ownership in USTC: Corporate Governance, Climate Impacts, Diversity, Equality, and Inclusion, and Compliance. These key areas set the tone for efforts across all USTC subsidiaries.

SDK FREJA has joined forces with the consultancy agency Deloitte in their work on the publication of this first sustainability report. Going forward, SDK FREJA will release annual sustainability reports covering the progress made by SDK FREJA on the ESG topics material to the Group.

Read the full sustainability report here

 

For further information, please contact:

Mikkel Wenzel Andreasen

Communications Officer, Group Communications

M +45 26 79 91 63

miwa@ustc.dk

 

About SDK FREJA:

SDK FREJA Group is a full-service logistics and shipping company. The main activities of SDK FREJA include freight forwarding within Road, Air & Sea, and Project Cargo, Logistics, as well as Stevedoring, Agency, Customs Clearing, Commercial Chartering, Liner and Cruise services, as well as recycling raw materials in the treatment of contaminated soil and industrial waste materials.

SDK FREJA is a privately owned logistics and shipping companies. With +1400 employees in eight countries the focus is on providing one entry point for a consistent and effective solution within the business areas.

SDK Freja Group is part of the Danish, family-owned United Shipping & Trading Company (USTC). USTC holds a portfolio of activities that include oil & energy, shipping & logistics, ship owning, risk management, car activities, IT, sustainable energy, and environment & recycling, and is present in 40 countries with more than 4000 employees.