DHL EXPRESS INVESTS ~EUR750 MILLION IN ASIA PACIFIC ON THE BACK OF E-COMMERCE GROWTH
MAKING A SPLASH IN THE GLOBAL MARKET

DHL Express is investing circa EUR 690 million between 2020 and 2022 to build or expand its facilities in key growth markets of Australia, Japan, Hong Kong S.A.R. and South Korea. Equally, it intends to spend close to EUR 60 million to bolster its Asia Pacific air network such as introducing direct, new (e.g. Vientiane, Yangon), and frequent (e.g. Oceania) flight routes.

 

 

North Asia investments

  • Osaka Distribution Center in Japan: Scheduled to be opened by the end of 2020 and will be DHL Express’ largest distribution facility in the country. With an investment of EUR 71.4 million, it will have 21,000 square meters (sq m) of floor space and is equipped with a state-of-the-art sorting system and X-ray inspection machines.

  • Central Asia Hub (CAH) Phase 3 Expansion in Hong Kong: as one of DHL Express’ three global hubs, the expansion underway will boost warehouse space by 50% to 47,000 sq m and increase the hub’s throughput capacity to 125,000 pieces per hour. This means that the hub will be handling six times more in terms of shipment volume than when it was first opened in 2004.

  • Incheon Gateway Expansion in South Korea: the EUR 131 million planned investment will boost shipment processing capacity by approximately 160%. The expansion will almost triple the facility’s gross floor area to 58,700 sq m, making it DHL Express’ largest gateway in Asia Pacific.


South & Southeast Asia investments

  • Bangladesh: DHL Express is investing ~EUR 25 million to build a new facility that will combine its country office and service center into a 10,000 sq m site. The new facility will bring about an approximate 35% increase in shipment processing capacity, and is expected to be opened in Q1 2022.

  • Kuala Lumpur Gateway in Malaysia: The gateway will increase the company’s processing capacity by more than 200%. The EUR 39.4 million facility will be situated at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport and is scheduled to be completed by 2022.

  • New gateway facility in Bangalore, India: the construction is underway, slated to be ready by 2021.


Utilizing a brand new Boeing 777-200LRF with a capacity of up to 102 tons, DHL Express now flies four times a week from its US hub in Cincinnati and the Los Angeles gateway to the DHL Express South Asia Hub in Singapore, via Sydney. The dedicated route shortens transit time for shipments to and from the US, and allows DHL to operate with greater efficiency while meeting the mounting demand for express deliveries.



Oceania investments


DHL Express has significantly increased its number of dedicated flights to and from Australia to around 30 regular services per week, compared to 10 before the Covid-19 pandemic hit. This includes a new flight that connects Melbourne, Auckland and Christchurch, as well as a new 4x-a-week flight between Hong Kong and Sydney.


  • Sydney Service Center: In September, the company launched its EUR31 million new service center, which is double the size of the previous facility and is equipped with an automated high-speed sorting system that processes up to 4,300 shipments per hour. 

  • Brisbane Gateway and Service Center Expansion: By end 2021, DHL Express will kick start operations of both facilities, in which the company will spend EUR 13.2 million to increase floor space by 148% and double its processing capacity. 


DHL Express currently has 23 dedicated aircraft in its Asia Pacific fleet, and operate approximately 1,040 flights per day. The company will be adding a new Airbus A330-300P2F to its Asia Pacific fleet in February 2021, as well as a new Boeing 737-800F in March 2021. Globally, the company has increased the number of its daily flights significantly. This includes four new Boeing 777F wide-body aircraft that were put into service just this year, with two more expected to be delivered. These six additional aircraft will enable DHL Express to carry out more than 3,000 additional intercontinental flights per year.