After the Russian-Chinese intergovernmental agreement was signed in January 2019, Russian international road carriers got an opportunity to carry goods to inland regions of China.

However, having the opportunity does not always mean being truly able to do something. In fact, only a few trucking companies have been able to arrange deliveries to / from China further than 50 kilometres from the border. Oleg Ostapovich, Head of the Commercial Department, TELS CARGO, and Evgeniya Golub, Deputy Director, TELS CARGO, talk about the main features of road transportation in the area and the challenges for entering the Chinese logistics market.

Oleg Ostapovich: “We have been arranging transportations to inland regions of China since autumn 2019 – first it was Beijing, then Shanghai, Hong Kong and Guangzhou. The market differs greatly from all the regions we have worked and are working in.”

1) Many international agreements are not working

Oleg Ostapovich: “A number of widespread international agreements are not working in China. For instance, the Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by Road (CMR). And the Convention on International Transport of Goods Under Cover of TIR Carnets started working only recently – customs formalities can be completed only at border crossing points, while they do not work for internal customs clearance points.”

2) You will have to find a local assistant

Evgeniya Golub: “It is quite a job to prepare a trip to China. One of the greatest challenges for entering the Chinese logistics market is the command of the language. Numerous documents provided for the vehicle and the driver have to be translated into Chinese. And most importantly, you need to know Chinese during the trip.

It will be extremely difficult to transport goods without a local contractor. Road signs do not have Latin transliteration. You will also have to communicate with local services and the police. You will certainly need assistance when loading and unloading goods. Booking a hotel without a local assistant might be challenge, too. So far, we have been working with professional local contractors, who have proved reliable over time.”

3) Limitations on the hours of work and the list of restricted goods

Evgeniya Golub: “Working hours of border checkpoints must be taken into consideration when planning transportation – the checkpoints work from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nothing is done outside the working hours.

Another feature of road transportation to China is transport restrictions on certain types of goods. Some goods can be imported to China by sea, but cannot be imported by road. Some types of goods are in general prohibited from entering China, for example, certain recycled chemicals. It is quite difficult to organize road transportation of dangerous and oversized cargo. And if you haven’t got into the issue with local experts before the tri and you don’t know for sure which goods are permitted and which are prohibited, you are most likely to suffer great losses.”

4) What is transported and where to?

Oleg Ostapovich: “So far, the major volume of road carriages from China has been to nearby Russian regions, but trips to Moscow and St. Petersburg are becoming more and more frequent. When the cargo is expensive and requires fast delivery, road transport can be beneficial over long distances. For instance, road freight rate from Beijing to Moscow is around $7.5K. And the cargo is delivered safely in 12-13 days. China boasts of good roads, so 800 kilometres per day can be covered easily.”

Evgeniya Golub: “We have already transported factory equipment, car parts, glass, aluminum shapes, rubber and chemicals from China by our own transport, and we can deliver any cargo suitable for transportation in a tilt semi-trailer.”

***

REFERENCE. TELS Group has been carrying out freight transportation to / from China by all modes of transport. We deliver a wide variety of cargo including high-precision medical equipment and pharmaceuticals, sophisticated electrical components, manufacturing equipment, accumulator batteries, consumer goods, chemical raw materials, heavy dangerous goods, etc.

Until recently, all logistics schemes included sea, air and rail transport, while road transport was used for deliveries not further than 50 kimometres from the border. Now we can use road transport to deliver goods to inland regions of China.

In most cases, the customer is offered several delivery schemes. Besides, the customer can use the existing schemes to optimize their logistics costs in various cases of their own business.

What proves company’s success? The following three factors determine it:

1. A constant increase in the volume of services and profit.
2. An increase in the number of loyal customers.
3. Business expansion from company’s own funds.

TELS has all the three attributes. The company can also boast of a bright event – this year TELS partnered with GreenLine to open MAN Dealership close to Smolensk (Kamenka village).

One can immediately appreciate the excellent location of the centre, which is couple of hundred meters from the M1 / E30 highway (convenient access is of great importance for heavy vehicles).

The service station is equipped up to the state of the art providing ergonomic workplaces and complying with high environmental standards. The station has everything for quality vehicle check and service - a spacious repair block, modern diagnostic equipment, tire assembly, washing, etc.

The diagnostic equipment allows to identify the malfunctions within the vehicle. Used engine oil is collected in a special container for recycling without pollution risk. A constant temperature of at least 21 degrees is maintained at workplaces.

The repair block has five stations. Each of them can serve four tractor units at a time or a semi-trailer truck and a tractor unit. The stations are equipped with pits and mobile electric elevators capable of lifting the tractor together with the loaded semi-trailer.

Driver’s relaxation room makes the time spent waiting comfortable and allows to watch the work online.

Needless to say, the dealership will greatly facilitate the business of many carriers by offering new opportunities for acquisition and further high-quality service of MAN vehicles.

We wish luck and success to the new business for the benefit of its Clients!

The Government of the Russian Federation has established special procedures for the transit of goods from the countries that established sanctions against the Russian Federation.

The Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation № 1877 dated December 27, 2019 came into force on January 7, 2020. The document establishes the “procedures for international transit of certain agricultural goods, food staple and food transported by road or railway from countries imposing or joining in economic sanctions against Russian legal bodies or individuals via the territory of the Russian Federation to the third countries”.

Essentially, the transportation of certain goods from the above mentioned countries can only be fulfilled with electronic navigation seals and by vehicles “excluding access to the goods in the vehicles, thus maintaining the integrity of the electronic navigation seal and the contents”.

The regulations also govern:

• the issue of special vehicle recording documents to drivers engaged in such transportations;

• the requirements for identification tools (seals) based on GLONASS, global navigation satellite system technology;

• the list of entry points across the state border of the Russian Federation, stationary and mobile check points as well as railway checkpoints used in the specified transit shipments.

The Government Decree and the original text of the Regulations>>

TELS achieved accredited ISO 27001: Information Security Management Systems (ISMS) certification on October 17, 2019.

The audit was performed by TÜV certification body (Germany).

REFERENCE. ISO/IEC 27001 is one of the key and most effective way to protect and manage information. The standard specifies the requirements for establishing, implementing, operating, monitoring, reviewing, maintaining and improving a documented information security management system within the context of organization’s overall business risks. The Information Security Management System covers all information assets – paper and electronic documents, computers, information systems, networks, personnel storing and processing information.

Why is the certificate so important for the company and its customers?

The major benefits of implementing the Information Security Management System are identifying the most serious threats and developing an efficient information security system which will ensure long-term success of the organization.

By achieving Information Security Management Systems certification the company obtains the following benefits:

• minimized risks of unauthorized access to business information;
• ncreased transparency in information management;
• improved world-wide company image and reputation;
• demonstration of high level of company’s reliability to contractors and customers;
• increased attractiveness for new partners;
• higher competitive advantage in the market.

ISO/IEC 27001 certification demonstrates to our business partners and customers that the company has an effective information security management system and that their business information is well protected.