Nippon Express France (NEF), a subsidiary of Nippon Express, has opened a logistics centre in the Moroccan port of Tanger Med to meet rising logistics demand in the region. Nippon has been focusing on its network expansion in South Asia over the last months with the opening of three new warehouses in Shangai and Laos, and is now planning future expansion in North Africa.
Services offered by NEF at its new Tanger Med logistics centre will include arranging customs documents, transferring containers from the port to its warehouse, storing goods and preparing them for dispatch, and delivering and re-exporting goods to other countries, especially in North Africa.
Situated in northern Morocco, Tanger Med Port is one of the largest container ports in Africa, linked to 186 ports in 77 countries, and the Tanger Free Zone (TFZ) adjacent to the port boasts about 800 tenant companies.
Automobile and automotive parts manufacturers and other automotive-related companies from around the world, including many automotive parts companies from Japan, have set up production facilities in the TFZ. “There are several customers, tier 1 and tier 2, which are currently delivering automotive parts from Asian or other foreign countries to Morocco and other North African countries passing through Europe, and for these customers it is useful to use Tanger port directly,” a Nippon Express spokesman said. According to Automotive Logistics, the companies can gain lead time and achieve costs savings by doing so.
Prior to the opening of the Tanger Med port logistics centre, Nippon Express opened a Moroccan branch in Casablanca in December 2017 to carry out air and ocean cargo forwarding operations.
Morocco’s government has in recent years been pursuing strategic policies aimed at enhancing the country’s status as a logistics hub for North and West Africa, with Tanger Med Port located in northern Morocco serving as a key gateway. Nippon Express is seeking to strengthen its logistics functions in anticipation of future growth in Morocco and North Africa.
Source: Nippon Express
