September 15, 2022 at the Polonia Palace Hotel in Warsaw, the 21st Congress of Forwarders, which is one of the most important cyclical events in the transport, forwarding and logistics industry in Poland, took place.

Organized for several years by the Polish Chamber of Forwarding and Logistics, the congress has become a permanent fixture in the calendar of important events for the TSL industry. It is a forum for discussion on topics important for entrepreneurs in the TSL sector in the perspective of business activity.

 
Participants of this year’s Congress took part in lectures on the threats and challenges of the Polish economy in times of crisis, planned changes in legislation and customs procedures. There were also discussion panels on the following topics: Changes in supply chains caused by the Covid 19 pandemic and the war between Russia and Ukraine – the role of forwarders and logistics operators in their reconstruction, Digitization in the TSL industry and Litigation and alternative methods of dispute resolution in the TSL industry.

Much has been said about the oligopoly in maritime transport: the huge profits made by shipowners contribute to vertical integration. It was discussed whether market conditions will change, whether freight rates will drop and whether the quality of carriers’ services will improve. The role of the European Commission was mentioned as well as joint letters issued by representatives of the logistics community in Europe (including FIATA, CLEACAT, ESC, FREPORT). Thanks to pressure from these organizations, the European Commission announced a consultation on the so-called Consortia Block Exemption Regulation (CBER) – which excludes EU shipowners from general competition rules. During the debate, it was pointed out that the conditions for establishing the CBER in 2009 towards EU shipowners have changed since then, and some reasons for this exclusion are not met.

Based on the discussions during the Congress, it can be concluded that disruptions in supply chains, especially in maritime transport, will be less severe next year. Unfortunately, it is doubtful that the oligopoly in the maritime container market, which has recently had a negative impact on the market, will be broken.