HKScan signed a construction agreement with Estonian construction company Astlanda Ehitus to build a logistics center for HKScan’s Baltic operations in Harjumaa County near Tallinn in Estonia.
The construction will be completed in August 2021. A central logistics center serving the entire Baltic region will save logistics costs and reduce the environmental impact of logistics, the company stated in a press release.
According to Anne Mere, EVP HKScan’s Business Unit Baltics, the steady growth in sales volumes of both Rakvere and Tallegg meat and food products and the company's desire to provide its customers with fast and flexible delivery in all Baltic states has led to the decision to move the existing Rakvere and Riga assembly centers into a single central logistics center.
“Centralized logistics will help us to support growth of HKScan in Estonia and in Latvia, and maintain our market leader position in both markets,” said Mere. “A central logistics center serving the entire Baltic region will save approximately one million euros annually and reduce the environmental impact of logistics significantly. The main environmental benefit comes from the installation of solar panels built on the top of the center and the reduction of unnecessary transport by 400,000 kilometers per year.”
Tero Hemmilä, CEO of HKScan Corporation, added that a new logistics center supports not only strategic growth plans but also fulfills the expectations of consumers and the company itself for responsible business.
“HKScan has the ambition to move towards carbon neutrality. Several investments in Estonia, both in production and in the logistics center, help us to move in this direction,” said Hemmilä.
Kaupo Kolsar, chairman of the board of Astlanda Ehitus, described that this is also an important project for them, which will enable them to support the growth of Estonia's leading meat and food company.
“We provide HKScan with a turnkey solution. This means that we will self-finance and build the center based on the project from HKScan and enter into a 10-year rent agreement to operate it by HKScan in Baltics,” said Kolsar.
The new Baltics logistics center will have 9,000 square meters of storage space, which can later be increased. The logistic center employs 105 people, the employees of current assembly centers in Rakvere and Riga are expected to continue work within the company.
