The land solution to the Houthi threat to Israel is working and registering a sharp increase in demand for transportation from the East to Israel via the land route. Trucknet, which recently began operating the "land bridge" between the ports of Dubai and Haifa, reports an increase in demand, partly due to the Houthi threat.
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Hanan Friedman, CEO of Trucknet, told Israel Hayom, "We originally entered the event to shorten the passage of goods from the East to Israel by 10 days, from where it started, but now we have also become a safer alternative."
While the ship takes two weeks to get from Dubai Port to Ashdod Port, a truck makes this journey in just 4 days. Due to the Houthi threat, giant shipping companies have announced that they will reroute their ship traffic around Africa, a round that is estimated to extend the journey by a month.
The price of transportation by truck is about $ 1.2 per kilometer, about 20% more expensive than the price of transportation by sea on normal days. Since the outbreak of the war, sea freight prices have jumped, so Trucknet says its price is now cheaper than freight ships.
From the United Arab Emirates to Haifa Port. The land solution that bypasses the Houthi threat, photo: None
So although the land solution is significantly shorter and safer, it is a solution that will not be able to replace cargo ships in scope, since about 350 trucks a day can pass through the Sheikh Hussein border crossing, but on the other hand, it is a new and safe alternative that shortens delivery time and constitutes to some extent preparation for a "new Middle East" – the development of trade relations in the region within the framework of the Abraham Accords.
Not affordable for cars
Friedman says the company's trucks already transport various food products, plastics, machinery and equipment from India and China. At this stage, however, Friedman explains that regarding cars, he does not see economic feasibility because while about 4,000 cars enter the ship, a truck can only transport 8-10 cars, so this is an additional cost of about $700 per car. Moreover, in the current period, the stock of new unsold cars is high due to a decline in demand, and therefore even if the imported cars arrive in Israel within a month or more via the Suez Canal bypass route, there will be no harm to this market.
A week ago, Trucknet, which is traded on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, announced the signing of a cooperation agreement with Puretrans FZCO, a UAE-based company that works in cooperation with Dubai Ports Company DP World (Dubai, UAE), which specializes in logistics, transportation and transportation brokerage.
Import of cars. The truck can only carry 8-10 compared to the 4,000 a ship can hold, Photo: Joshua Yosef
As part of the agreement, the parties will cooperate in connection with the land transportation of cargo on the "land bridge" route connecting the UAE, via Saudi Arabia and Jordan, and Haifa Port in Israel, so that cargo shipments and transportation service providers can use the Trucknet platform to streamline transportation on this route.
As part of the collaboration, Trucknet services for land bridge route users will include automation of cargo transportation, real-time tracking of trucks and the status of shipments, emissions calculations for each shipment and more. The parties agreed that their cooperation during the term of the agreement will be done on an exclusive basis, in such a way that any freight forwarder using the services of the business partner will do so through the Trucknet platform only.
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