Deutsche Post AG have said no decision has been made on moving the European hub of its DHL express package carrier from Brussels airport to a new location -but that the German city of Leipzig was in the running if it chose to quit Belgium.
“There are capacity problems (in Brussels) which have to be resolved,” said Ina Quilling, a spokeswoman for Deutsche Post which owns DHL.
Read MoreDutch prime minister, Guy Verhofstadt, has stated that DHL must keep its European head office in Belgium, preferably at Zaventem international airport near Brussels.
The PM spoke to the media after a two-day government meeting following threats by DHL that it may move its European hub from Brussels if the Belgian authorities don’t approve the company’s growth plans. Local residents are strongly opposed to DHL’s plans to operate additional night flights out of Zaventem airport.
In an attempt to appease both the anti-noise opponents and DHL, Verhofstadt suggested a compromise: DHL could be allowed to expand its operations until September 2004. If the parties fail to find a solution that is acceptable to all, then the government would consider the implications of losing DHL to another airport.
Read MoreThe two-day cabinet meeting failed to produce binding decisions on a number of issues, and in particular on the controversial problem of night flights at Brussels International Airport in Zaventem (Brussels Brabant).
A clear decision on DHL and the limit of 25,000 night flights per year has been postponed until later on this summer or autumn, until well after the regional elections on June 13.
Read MoreBrussels International Airport Company (BIAC) has refuted claims from environmental and residents’ groups that it has overstated the benefits of DHL’s planned expansion.
DHL expects its European hub to be handling 781,000 tonnes by 2012, compared with 312,000 tonnes today. There would be 4,200 extra staff at an expanded hub, compared with a loss of 3,900 jobs if Brussels was only a sub-hub, BIAC has claimed.
“DHL relocation would significantly affect the airline companies as they carry almost 30% of the parcels forwarded by DHL, ” BIAC said.
Extrapolated figures on DHL’s likely future contribution to the Belgian economy and the growth in airport-related economic activity and indirect employment have angered interest groups, but BIAC has accused them of slander.
Read MoreWith an investment of USD6,000, the DHL Internacional de Mexico logistics and package delivery company has inaugurated its gateway, with which it will strengthen its presence in the interior of the country, as well as its connections with the US and Canada. The gateway is expected to generate a turnover of USD6mil per year and to create 200 direct and indirect jobs. DHL has a market share of around 35% in Mexico, and plans to increase the flow of incoming packages by around 170 as well as significantly reducing both arrival and departure times.
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