How Hauts-de-France Became One of France’s Logistics Champions (and Is Aiming Even Higher)

Philippe Hourdain: Logistics is strategic for us. We have 144,000 direct and indirect private-sector jobs linked to this sector, representing 11% of private employment regionally. Hauts-de-France is France’s second-largest region in terms of employment in warehousing and storage. This is largely due to our geographic proximity to major European metropolitan areas such as Brussels and London, our 237-kilometer coastline with three major ports, and our direct access to the Île-de-France region and its 12 million inhabitants.

Philippe Hourdain: Thanks to our region’s natural assets and the collective strength we have built together. As the birthplace of mass retail and mail-order sales in France, our region has become a leader in distribution and e-commerce. The champions in these various sectors are also major logistics players. In addition, the expansion of our logistics facilities and the commitment of public-sector stakeholders, starting with the Regional Council, have made a major contribution to the development of logistics.The goal shared by all stakeholders in this sector in Hauts-de-France is to make the region a logistics hub of European scale. The process is underway, notably thanks to the creation a few months ago of the Norlink federation (editor’s note: a federation promoting port and rail infrastructure in the Hauts-de-France region).

Philippe Hourdain: Developed by American economist Jeremy Rifkin, the third industrial revolution was launched seven years ago by Daniel Percheron, when he was President of the Regional Council, and Philippe Vasseur, as President of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, with the aim of making our region one of Europe’s most advanced in energy transition and digital technologies. Since then, stakeholders from the business world, higher education and local authorities have embraced the initiative.

It was therefore natural to combine it with logistics, given our economic development ambitions: we compete with the ports of Antwerp, Rotterdam and Hamburg but, without the same firepower, we must differentiate ourselves in order to successfully promote our logistics region internationally. Rev3 will contribute to this. In spring 2021, we created the International City of Logistics and Supply Chain in Dourges (Pas-de-Calais). This initiative, in which we are investing €42 million, will enable us to make Hauts-de-France the leading region for green supply chains by creating a dedicated ecosystem and providing industry professionals with the tools and training needed to move upmarket.

Philippe Hourdain: We are preparing to reap the full benefits of the Seine–Nord Europe Canal, scheduled to open in eight years. This infrastructure should enable Hauts-de-France to consolidate its role as a leading European region for intermodal freight flows. At the same time, we face other challenges, such as creating rail highways, launching trade routes to Asia, and expanding the port of Calais to gain market share in cross-Channel flows… In fact, they are all opportunities that, if seized, will make Hauts-de-France a highly attractive logistics region internationally.