DHL finds new home in Italy

Largely unnoticed by international transport media, the integrator has moved from its traditional Italian gateway, Bergamo, to 100 km distant Milan Malpensa Airport (MXP). This allows the Deutsche Post logistics arm to optimize its network, and substantially up the handling and sorting capacity.

Malpensa (MXP) is the integrator’s new gateway in Italy, while traffic at its former hub Bergamo (BGY) is scaled down. At DHL’s brand-new MXP sorting center, 38,000 pieces can be processed and distributed each hour, the equivalent volume of 37daily flights. In total, the integrator invested 110 million euros in its MXP facilities and assets. This represents one third of DHL’s overall spending in Italy. The hub was built in full compliance with the latest guidelines of the Deutsche Post DHL Group (DPDHL) for new facilities, inspired by sustainability, safety, and efficiency. The new facility enables DHL Express to integrate all processes under one roof which includes a service center for the fast pick up & delivery of shipments, emphasized Nazzarena Franco, CEO of DHL Express Italy on the occasion of the inauguration of the company’s new MXP hub.

Beacon project
The facility already provides work to 900 people, both direct and indirect, and, during peak periods, this number could increase by a further 10%. “The Malpensa Hub is the flagship of our strategy to strengthen our Italian business, for which we have set up an ambitious investment plan of over 350 million euros with the aim of becoming the preferred business partner of companies that produce and export Italian excellence to the world,” Mrs. Franco stated.
Armando Brunini, CEO of the SEA Group that manages the airports of Milan Malpensa and Linate, emphasized in his welcoming speech that thanks to DHL’s MXP commitment, the airport strengthens its leading role in the Italian cargo landscape and consolidates its position as preferred address in e-commerce, standard air freight and express in Southern Europe. 

From DHL’s Malpensa hub to the world
DHL Express connects MXP with domestic destinations such as Naples, Ancona, and Pisa and operates flights to/from Leipzig, Brussels, Paris, Barcelona, Vitoria, London, East Midlands, Cologne, Zagreb, Athens, Budapest and Thessaloniki, and, finally, liaises Malpensa with Bahrain and Seoul. On 17 November 2020, the last route to be added from Malpensa was Cincinnati, USA, with daily flights from Tuesday to Saturday.

Bergamo – downgraded by DHL
The brand-new headquarters will become the gateway for all goods produced in the Lombardy region and destined both to the southern parts of Italy and international markets, playing a fundamental role in developing northern Italy’s economy, SEA Group chief Armando Brunini emphasized.
“In this difficult moment caused by the global pandemic, cargo is a fundamental factor of resilience of the national economic and industrial production,” the official said.
In his video message, Giancarlo Giorgetti, prominent politician of the rightwing Lega Nord and Italian Minister of Economic Development, pointed out that DHL’s activities comply with sustainability guidelines “which have become the reference point for current and future political decisions.”
As for Bergamo, DHL traffic will be thinned out, which applies in particular to international services, but it will continue to see shuttle flights to and from Leipzig, DHL Express’s largest global hub.

DPDHL reports record annual figures
Following the Malpensa hub inauguration, Deutsche Post Group presented its 2020 fiscal results and delivered a 2021 forecast. According to CEO Frank Appel, the Group's profit reached almost 3 billion euros, compared with around 2.6 billion euros in 2019. This was only slightly below analysts' estimates.
Internet shopping massively upped transport volumes caused mainly by lockdowns sending the traditional bricks-and-mortar retail south. Hence, Deutsche Post’s parcel and express business run by DHL was the main driver of the earnings.

Optimistic outlook
According to Mr. Appel, the structural growth in online retailing will continue in 2021, leading to a further increase in shipment volumes in the domestic and international parcel business. The manager also expects DPDHL to benefit from the recovery in global trade and business customer activities.
For the operating result (EBIT), he expects an increase in the current year to more than 5.6 billion euros, followed by an improvement to more than 6.0 billion euros planned for fiscal 2023.
Due to the 2020 record profit, the Executive Board has proposed an increase in the dividend to 1.35 euros per share and, in parallel with the announcement, initiated a share buyback of up to 1 billion euros.
As far as the number of employees is concerned, the figure rose last year by 20,000, totaling around 570,000 worldwide.

Heiner Siegmund

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