We had the opportunity, and I would say the great privilege, to have a long and in-depth conversation with Sonia Herzog, CEO of the JSV Group since 2013. The group is a multimodal logistics services company comprising nine companies and reported revenues exceeding 100 million euros in the last fiscal year. Recently, the group has made significant investments and launched strategic projects. Additionally, they are celebrating their 30th anniversary.
What does JSV mean for Alicante and what does the recently launched hub represent?
The Hub at the Port of Alicante marks the beginning of a significant future. We are a logistics group comprising nine companies, each dedicated and specialized in a segment of the door-to-door logistics chain. Initially, the Hub at the Port of Alicante was the last piece we needed to integrate the door-to-door service fully. While it is possible to offer a multimodal door-to-door service, fully controlling it with our means is challenging. The hub is essentially the cherry on top, allowing us to offer a service primarily to the Canary Islands and recently to Turkey.
Controlling the entire door-to-door logistics chain for the Canary Islands made us realize that Alicante is a gateway to many nearby destinations crucial to us.
What nearby destinations are you referring to?
We are talking about connections to North Africa and Morocco and, of course, moving the Turkey line from Valencia to Alicante. The line now connects the Turkish port of Ambarli, in Istanbul, with the ports of Alicante and Barcelona for both import and export in just four days. This is the Road-Sea Turkey-Spain service, “Just 4 days!”
In Turkey, we are transferring our know-how and everything we have consolidated in the Canary Islands: door-to-door service, custom solutions with large-capacity special containers. This makes a difference in the Turkish market, offering a unique service until now. It’s a true alternative to trucking with a transit time of just four days using high-capacity containers (45′ pW HC and Super High Cube) and special containers adapted to any type of cargo. This also connects Turkey directly with the Canary Islands.
Simultaneously, we have provided the Canary Islands with a direct and fast connection to Turkey, a major production hub. Therefore, we have reconfigured our lines to offer a direct import and export service with the Canary Islands, with just a 10-day transit time.
Moreover, since Alicante is connected via multimodal rail with northern Spain and Miranda de Ebro, there are significant opportunities to extend the connection to northern Spain and northern Europe and the UK. This way, goods from the north connect efficiently and sustainably by train to the Canary Islands in just four days.
How did the Hub at the Port of Alicante come about?
The Hub at the Port of Alicante began as a crucial project for controlling the door-to-door logistics with our means. However, we quickly realized it was a gateway to nearby markets where we are already present, such as Turkey and, fundamentally, Morocco and Europe.
In essence, the international expansion within Europe enabled by the Port of Alicante with our flexible means is a dream. It is truly a ShortSea port that allows for multimodality with rail connections. We are delighted.
What role does the Miranda Terminal play?
It’s critical. We have about 180,000 square meters in Miranda, including a 90,000-square-meter rail terminal and another 90,000 square meters with logistics warehouses for pallet storage, decentralization, and control of steel materials.
We were already operational because we have a daily rail connection between Miranda and Barcelona. In fact, the traffic between Turkey and northern Spain, or from northern Spain to Turkey, goes through Miranda by rail. We centralize all the goods in Miranda, connect by rail to Barcelona, and from there, ship to Turkey or the Canary Islands. Over a month ago, we started a rail corridor between Miranda and Alicante, opening immense connectivity possibilities.
From Alicante to Miranda and northern Europe and the UK, and from the north to the south to Alicante and Morocco. The possibilities are enormous, which is exactly what we were looking for.
Detail this last point for me.
We are a multimodal operator. We have trucks, rail, and ships. Our market proposition is the reduction of CO2 emissions through efficient multimodal transport, which is what we have always aimed to do. Now, we do it with our means, ensuring total control.
Is this the end of a project or is there still broader development? Where is JSV headed?
We initially thought it was the cherry on top, the end of a project to control the door-to-door service, but now, enormous possibilities have opened up for us.
Alicante allows us to open Turkey to the Canary Islands and southern Spain. With Alicante, we realized that projects we had in mind, like establishing lines with Morocco or the UK, are now within reach. We have several proposals, and we are evaluating these studies. We thought we would implement these over time, but with the arrival of the Hub, these projects will develop much faster.
Is JSV a conventional shipping company? How would you define it?
We are not a shipping company; we are a multimodal group, a multimodal operator. We have ships, trucks, warehouses, customs agencies, and terminals. For us, the ship is a means, not an end. Multimodality must necessarily involve efficient transport, including trucks, rail, and ships. The ship is just one part, but we are not a shipping company focused on freight.
One of our key characteristics is our special containers. While we have standard containers like everyone else, our significant differentiation is adapting containers to the cargo. Therefore, we need to control our ships to transport a 45-foot container, which is exactly like a truck. Shipping companies don’t favor these containers because they lose space.
That’s why we are not a shipping company in any sense. We have ships, but our mentality is that of a multimodal logistics operator. We aim for door-to-door service. We are essentially a truck on a ship, but we are a truck at all levels, and our containers have the same capacity as a truck.
Regarding maritime services, ours are quick. We don’t just offer freight; we provide door-to-door service, controlling everything from management, storage, and dispatch to whatever the client needs. Shipping companies handle maritime freight; we handle door-to-door service, with all that entails.
Let’s talk about the logistics sector, currently experiencing significant changes and fluctuations. Where is it heading?
It’s heading towards what we do. For several years now, major shipping companies have aimed to control door-to-door service. The challenge is that it’s very complicated. To succeed, the client must be at the center. You have to care about the client and listen to them, which is challenging.
I understand that an international shipping company with large ships aims to make cargo volume efficient. They have standard containers and often work in automated terminals.
We can’t work in automated terminals because our containers vary in size—20 feet, 30 feet, 40 feet, 41 feet, 42 feet, and 45′ pW HC and Super High Cube.
Some products need standard containers and long transits, while others require much more personalized attention, even custom-made containers. We have more than 50 different types of containers, and if we need to create a custom container for a client’s need, we do it. We are a short-distance logistics provider, allowing us to adapt to clients’ needs.
Saying that large companies would have difficulty adapting is unfair, but they also cover a market segment that may not need this level of adaptation. Thus, thinking about markets like China or India is not our primary focus. Our mentality is short-distance logistics, connecting Spain with northern Europe, Morocco, North Africa, or Turkey—proximity logistics markets.
Changing the subject, you mentioned emission reductions. How does European emission regulation affect JSV?
It positively affects us. Contrary to what people might think, rail is not cheaper than trucks. People sometimes come to rail thinking it’s cheaper, only to find it’s not necessarily more economical.
Obviously, a truck offers services that rail cannot. But if you believe in multimodal transport, which we always have, combining truck, rail, and maritime transport is essential. None are valid on their own. The success of reducing CO2 emissions lies in combining these transport methods efficiently.
Additionally, our company emphasizes direct lines without intermediate ports to gain efficiency in line with the environmental emission regulations effective in the maritime sector since January 2024.
The truck plays a crucial role in short distances of 200/300 kilometers, but for distances of 500, 600, or 800 kilometers, a combination should be considered.
Companies were already making significant changes. Our clients believe in decarbonization not because they are forced to but because they recognize the need for change. This regulation imposes heavy penalties on those who cannot offer emission reductions.
We are in a position where we control our product 100% and can provide clients what they seek. This results from many years of investment and work.
Does the Spanish port sector believe non-European ports will have better conditions since they are not subject to these fees? Does this indirectly affect JSV?
I understand this situation, and yes, it affects us globally, but much less than a standard shipping company. What I do cannot be done by taking a ship to Morocco or non-European ports. For large ships, the cost difference between unloading in Valencia or Algeciras versus Morocco can be significant and is a disadvantage.
But in our case, we work with short-distance traffic, cabotage traffic. If we go to Morocco, it’s from Spain, not China or Turkey.
Our clients need fast service and high-volume containers. We are essentially a truck, affected by what impacts a truck, not what affects a maritime terminal handling 20,000 TEUs.
Talking about the Canary Islands, is it a strategic location for JSV? What does it mean for your company?
The Canary Islands are not just strategic; they are our home. We are who we are because we are from the Canary Islands. It is our core business. The Canary Islands must continue growing at all levels, offering all services. As a multimodal company, we need to extend our business and know-how to other markets, but the Canary Islands will always be our home.
JSV is what it is thanks to the Canary Islands, but it’s important to diversify risks. The Canary Islands have faced tough times and sweet moments, and we’ve been there through both. Businesses need broader connectivity to be solid.
Through Alicante, we connect Turkey with the Canary Islands. We are talking to clients in the Canary Islands to consider buying products not only from the Peninsula but also from Turkey. There are interesting, economical, high-quality products that may appeal to the Canary market. Everything we connect with other markets directly benefits the Canary Islands, our number one market.
