DHL investing $75 million in Korea
At a press conference held in Seoul, Deutsche Post World Net CEO and Chairman Klaus Zumwinkel announced that the company has added another $25 million to the $50 million it agreed to invest last November and that the funds will be used to expand DHL’s facilities at Incheon International Airport.
DHL is owned by the Germany-based Deutsche Post World Net, which became the largest air and ocean freight company in the world in 2005 after the acquisition of the British logistics company Exel. Exel now operates under the DHL brand.
The company said that it will expand the area of its freight terminal at Incheon International Airport so that another annual 7 million tons of air freight can be processed there by 2020.
Current freight processing capabilities are 2,500 units per hour, but expansions will enable the company to boost those capabilities to 8,000 units per hour.
Mr. Zumwinkel said that Incheon International Airport and Shanghai Pudong Airport are the final candidates for DHL’s Northeast Asian hub, and that the company is negotiating with the government and airport authorities of both countries. He said a final decision would be made in the first half of this year.
“The first, second and third standard in selecting the airport is the location. The air routes must be well-connected,” Mr. Zumwinkel said. “Low labor costs and government benefits are also important. In terms of location, Incheon and Pudong have similar advantages.”
Mr. Zumwinkel said the strength of Incheon International Airport was its location, infrastructure, and government support.
“But labor costs are expensive. Distribution is a business that requires a lot of labor cost,” he said.
By Park Hyun-young JoongAng Ilbo [wohn@joongang.co.kr]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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