According to industry association Transport en Logistiek Nederland (TLN), costs in the sector are piling up. Diesel prices have risen sharply in a short period: where a litre cost around EUR 2.10 a week ago, the price is now about EUR 2.46 per litre. For transport companies, where fuel accounts for an average of 20 to 25 per cent of total costs, this has an immediate and significant impact.
Rising diesel prices come on top of other cost increases. For example, labour costs are expected to rise by about six per cent this year, while the truck levy will be introduced on 1 July. This new levy is expected to cost transport companies around 20 cents per kilometre per truck.
According to TLN, this will put further pressure on the already thin margins of transport companies. Elisabeth Post, chairman of TLN’s board, warns that the sector will find it increasingly difficult to keep its head above water due to this accumulation of costs.
A major problem for transport companies is that fuel costs often have to be paid immediately, while they can only be passed on to customers later. Diederik Jan Antvelink, director of logistics company Nedcargo, points out that hauliers feel the impact of higher diesel prices immediately at the pump, while adjustments to rates through contractual diesel clauses often take place only months later.
As a result, transport companies sometimes have to pre-finance large amounts. Antvelink calculates that his company consumes about 100,000 litres of diesel per week. With the current price increase, this means the company has to advance around EUR 35,000 per week.
If this situation persists for several weeks, the impact on working capital could exceed one million euros. On top of that, large shippers often have long payment terms, meaning transport companies do not receive their money back until much later.
Fuel costs account, on average, for 20 to 25 per cent of a road haulage company’s total costs.
According to transport companies, this situation clearly illustrates the financial dynamics within the logistics chain. Oil companies charge their prices immediately and collect invoices quickly, while transport companies often have to wait months before they can recover their higher costs from clients.
TLN is calling on the government to consider measures that could ease the pressure on the road transport sector. A temporary reduction in diesel excise duty is mentioned as a possible option, although no concrete proposal has been made at this stage.
The industry stresses that a healthy transport sector is crucial for the Dutch economy. Trucks supply shops, deliver goods to businesses and support construction projects across the country every day.
Without stable and financially sound road transport, the supply chain of the Netherlands could be at risk. That is why the government is closely monitoring developments in fuel prices and the impact of geopolitical tensions.
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