News / Ambitious Medlog inks deal to operate and expand UK iPort Rail terminal

Doncaster iPort

MSC’s inland logistics subsidiary, Medlog, has inked a long-term contract to operate a UK intermodal depot, part of the shipping line’s plan to extend its presence in supply chain hinterlands.

Medlog has been appointed as the operator of the iPort Rail hub in Doncaster, after signing a long-term lease with iPort joint-owner and developer Verdion.

It is expected to take over operations in the first quarter of next year, with “lifting and storage of containers at the iPort Rail terminal performed under the Medlog brand”.

“iPort Rail is strategically located, less than five minutes from junction 3 of the M18 motorway, and it will continue to be an open access terminal, with operations continuing seamlessly and without interruption to its customers,” said Medlog UK MD Dan Everitt.

“The investment in the iPort Rail terminal is part of the group’s continued investment in intermodal infrastructure in the United Kingdom,” he added.

Verdion jointly owns the iPort site with Canadian infrastructure investment fund Healthcare of Ontario Pension Plan. The property developer claimed iPort was the largest inland freight facility in the country, covering some 800 acres, with warehouses operated by Amazon, Ceva, Fellowes, Lidl, Woodland Group, Maritime Group and Euro Pool Systems.

The Medlog agreement includes a commitment by Verdion to begin developing the rail terminal’s second phase. This will see its size and storage capacity doubled, and the number of trains it can accommodate daily increased. Planning consent has been secured and work is expected to start in Q1 24, with phase 2 expected to come into operation in Q1 25.

The terminal currently handles daily blocktrains from Felixstowe, Southampton, Immingham and Teesport.

“We have significant untapped potential here at iPort to increase provision and support national and international supply chains,” said John Clements, executive director of Verdion. “This agreement with Medlog will underpin current operations as well as creating a strong platform for future growth, including more business and employment opportunities across the Doncaster and South Yorkshire region,” he added.

Although probably of limited interest to a wider global audience, the deal is significant in the sense that it further underscores MSC’s ambitions for Medlog. If its investment in HHLA is cleared, as currently seems likely, it will have access to – and in parts, control of – an intermodal network stretching from the Adriatic to Yorkshire.

Listen to The Loadstar’s Gavin van Marle and DVZ’s Sebastian Reimann discuss how MSC’s bid for German port operator HHLA includes an ambitious play for a large rail network