Arrival of logistics giant is chance for local transport companies - GEFCO starts operations in Serbia

(Lacezar Rubcev, Luk Nadal and Veljko Jovanovic at the presentation of GEFCO)

GEFCO, one of the leading global providers of logistics services and the European leader in automotive logistics, has started operations in Serbia. The majority owner of this group, which was established by PSA Peugoet Citroen in 1949, is the Russian railway firm RZD. The GEFCO Group, which operates in five continents and registers an annual turnover of over EUR 4 billion, will hire local companies from various sectors of the economy of Serbia to prepare and implement logistics plans together with manufacturers.

- As a company with unique experience in the management and optimization of supply chains, it is our pleasure to back Serbia in the implementation of projects aimed at improving the industrialization, foreign trade, and the service sector. Efficient logistics represents a key factor in the development of gross domestic product (GDP) - Luk Nadal, the general manager of the GEFCO Group, said at the presentation of that company in Serbia.

Among GEFCO's clients are Renault Nissan, Ford, VWG, PSA Citroen, Audi, Toyota, Fiat Group, Delphi...

To illustrate the announced infrastructure development in our country, GEFCO Serbia CEO Lacezar Rubcev said that about EUR 7.5 billion should be invested in the modernization of rail transportation in Serbia by 2027.

Cooperation with GEFCO will make it possible for local transportation companies to boost their operations by about 400 tours a year.

SCC: Great opportunity

- The arrival of a company like GEFCO points to the credibility of the Serbian market. Such companies are not a competition, but a motivator. I am sure there is a great future in changing the ways of transportation in Serbia - said Veljko Jovanovic, an adviser to the president of the Serbian Chamber of Commerce (SCC).

According to him, the service industry is a segment that Serbia needs to continue to develop. He also underlined that exports to the Russian market were expected to grow.

GEFCO in figures

- Over 350 business locations, 44 branches worldwide, and 12,000 employees
- Turnover in 2014 exceeded EUR 4.1 billion
- One of the ten leading European groups
- Ownership structure - 75% of shares held by RZD, 25% in the possession of PSA
- Expertise in customs and tax activities, road, rail and transoceanic transportation, storage and cross-docking