Logistics

Multimodality - combine the advantages of different types of transport

Mutimodal transport - the magic formula that is revolutionising logistics in Luxembourg. In fact, Luxembourg hosts two of the most significant logistic hubs in Europe and benefits from unrivalled connectivity to European markets. 

• Luxembourg’s international airport is one of the leading freight airports in Europe and home base of Cargolux, Europe’s leading all-cargo carrier. Luxembourg’s airport cargo centre has a total capacity of one million tons of freight per year and offers high-quality services. With its modern and well-equipped air freight handling facilities, LuxairCargo offers secure, efficient and speedy ground handling, allowing cargo wide-body aircraft to unload and settle customs' duties at a record speed. Trucks are then on the motorway network within a few minutes and able to reach any European city in less than 24 hours.
• These links benefit from one of the most important rail sorting infrastructures in Europe which is located in the south of the country, between Bettembourg and Dudelange, where the Luxembourg-Perpignan rail motorway also ends. Lorry-Rail, a subsidiary of CFL, operates a rail motorway service for standard unaccompanied semi-trailers that connects Luxembourg to the South of France and Spain. This innovative multimodal solution ensures the transportation of semi-trailers over a distance of more than 1,000km. New routes through Europe are also planned and will enhance the Lorry-Rail means of transport.
• Connected to rail and motorway network, the river port of Mertert offers warehousing and services based on tri-modal, waterway-oriented transport logistics to other inland and North Sea destinations (e.g. coaster shipping). It is essentially used for the distribution and reception of containers as well as bulk products such as steel, iron, petroleum products, construction materials, fertilizers and heavy concrete.

Seamless access to the single market

These logistic hubs also benefit from seamless connectivity to the major motorway networks in Germany and France, as well as the motorways leading to the Belgian and Dutch ports.

Luxembourg actually benefits from its advantageous geographical location in the European Union, a single market of over 400 million persons. Connections from Luxembourg provide access to the markets which bring together 60% of the GDP of the EU:

• in 24 hours by road transport;
• in 2 hours by air transport.

The reliable, programmed and combined rail links, are provided by CFL multimodal connecting the main platforms in the EU and beyond, such as the North Sea, the Baltic Sea, the Iberian peninsula, the Mediterranean Sea, Turkey and China. Since 2019, the rail link to China has connected Luxembourg to the strategic city of Chengdu, making Luxembourg one of the dedicated European ports of entry for China.

Furthermore, theMertert river port provides access to waterway traffic on the Moselle and the Rhine, a gateway to some of the most developed economic centres in Europe. At the same time, it is served by a rail line that allows goods and equipment to be brought in and out of Germany quickly. Direct access to the motorway also offers rapid distribution of goods in the cross-border region.

The combination of these hubs provides connections to several major European ports such as Antwerp, Zeebrugge, Rotterdam and Hamburg in the north and Barcelona, Marseille, Genoa or Trieste in the south.

Dedicated infrastructure for tailor-made solutions

Logistics parks

Two logistics parks, Eurohub Centre and Eurohub South, provide real estate solutions (i.e. by building or renting warehouse facilities) within easy reach of the airport, the multimodal rail/road terminal and the inland river port. Both have direct access to major European motorways. The parks are dedicated to value-added logistics activities. Since 2013, about 280,000 m2 of logistics warehouse facilities have been built or are under construction in Luxembourg, representing an investment of about € 285 million by the companies concerned.

Luxembourg High Security Hub

Located next to the airport’s cargo centre, the Luxembourg High Security Hub is a multi-service platform dedicated to the storage, handling and trading of valuable goods (e.g. artworks, fine wines, precious metals and collectible items). This state-of-the-art facility offers maximum security, controlled temperature and humidity storage conditions and features the latest technologies to ensure safe and secure storage.

The Luxembourg High Security Hub operates under the supervision of the customs administration and is subject to a tax and customs framework which requires that goods can only access and leave the Luxembourg High Security Hub through licensed operators. These are obliged to keep detailed inventories documenting the movements and physical locations of stored goods. Goods originating from non-EU countries that are imported into the Luxembourg High Security Hub benefit from a suspension of VAT and customs duties until their final importation into the EU.