Operail and Oiltanking – A New Partnership on Finnish Railroads

Added on 11.02.2021

Operail Finland Oy, subsidiary of an international transport and logistics company Operail started cooperation with Oiltanking – one of the largest independent operators of tank terminals for oils, gases, and chemicals worldwide – to transport liquid fuels on the Vainikkala-Kotka route.

Paul Lukka, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Operail Finland and a member of the Management Board of Operail Group, called this another significant milestone in the short history of the Group’s Finnish operations. “We are moving forward with giant leaps in Finland and executing our strategy as planned. We are grateful to Oiltanking Finland for the trust they have placed in us, and we will do our best to meet their expectations.” said Lukka, adding that the estimated annual freight volume of the new cooperation exceeds one million tons.

“We have made history,” commented Merja Porkka, Terminal Manager Mussalo. “A lot of effort went into paving the way for the cooperation between Operail and Oiltanking, including integrating our data communications and organizing full-day safety trainings. Now it feels like we recruited our own employees,” she said with a smile.

Operail Finland commenced operations in November last year and has more than doubled its headcount since. “As we expand our operations, we need to make sure we have the necessary workforce. We have managed to rapidly fill all our vacancies,” said Ilkka Seppänen, Managing Director Operail Finland Oy. He added that the company offers more customized and flexible service to its clients, enabling them to increase their productivity. This is a new phenomenon on the market. “We would like to thank Oiltanking Finland’s experts for their faith and cooperation in developing new operating models with us,” added Seppänen. 

Oiltanking Finland’s terminals are located in Kotka and Hamina, and due to their proximity to the border are considered a gateway to and from Russia. These terminals mainly serve as an important hub for Russian chemical flows; various products enter via rail, are stored in heatable and insulated tanks and forwarded via truck or vessels. The terminals have 170 discharging places for rail cars and 13 for tank trucks.

Oiltanking GmbH is a subsidiary of Marquard & Bahls, a Hamburg-based company that operates in the fields of supply, trading, and logistics of energy & chemicals. Oiltanking is one of the largest independent tank storage providers for petroleum products, gases, and chemicals worldwide. The company owns and operates 64 terminals in 24 countries in the Americas, Europe, Middle East, Africa, and Asia-Pacific including China and India. Oiltanking has an overall storage capacity of 20.2 million cbm. 

Operail is an international transport and logistics company whose main areas of operation are freight transport, the construction and repairing of locomotives, and the rental of rolling stock. The company employs close to 600 people. In addition to the parent company AS Operail, the Operail group includes the freight wagon rental companies AS Operail Leasing and Operail Leasing Finland Oy as well as the Finnish railway transport company Operail Finland Oy.