🧊 DHL, RL Cold plan North American cold chain rollout

Welcome back to CubeCold News where we cover the latest developments in the cold chain industry and temperature controlled logistics.

In today’s edition:

• DHL and RL Cold plan new North American cold storage network

• Morrison launches APAC cold chain platform Polaris through Singapore acquisition

• EBRD finances NewCold's first automated cold storage in Romania

• Kaleris unveils ColdLink system at Manifest 2026

• Oakland International expands Irish freight division to boost cross‑border cold chain flows

News

DHL and RL Cold plan new North American cold storage network DHL Supply Chain and cold storage developer RL Cold signed a memorandum of understanding to develop more than 5 million sq ft of temperature controlled facilities across the U.S. and Canada.

• The partners will jointly build food‑grade distribution centres that meet FDA Food Safety Modernization Act requirements, including multi‑temperature zones, humidity and air‑quality controls, high‑clearance/high‑density racking and advanced refrigeration.

• DHL will contribute operational expertise while RL Cold brings design and construction capabilities, with phased construction expected to begin later in 2026.

• DHL’s Dennis Lutwen said the average age of U.S. cold storage facilities is about 31 years and that modern, automation‑ready capacity is urgently needed.

• The initiative aims to close critical gaps in North America’s cold chain infrastructure and support rising demand from online grocery services. (DHL)

Morrison launches APAC cold chain platform Polaris through Singapore acquisition Morrison, a global infrastructure investment firm managing over US$30 billion in assets, has established Polaris, a new Asia-Pacific cold chain platform, through the acquisition of SuperFreeze Singapore.

• The deal includes SuperFreeze Tuas, a fully operational automated cold storage facility, along with several advanced stage pipeline opportunities across the region.

• Singapore's heavy dependence on food imports and its role as a major transhipment hub drive sustained demand for cold storage, while industrial land constraints have created a persistent shortage of modern facilities.

• Morrison's partner William Smales highlighted the firm's conviction in Singapore and its ambition to lead cold chain evolution across APAC.

• Platform CEO Troy Shortell said the acquisition strengthens SuperFreeze's mission to expand advanced cold logistics facilities leveraging high-efficiency refrigeration and distributed energy systems. (Morrison)

EBRD finances NewCold's first automated cold storage in Romania The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is providing a loan of up to US$37 million (RON 182.8 million) to NewCold Romania for the development of its first high-automation cold storage warehouse in Bucharest.

• Banca Comercială Română will provide a matching loan, with the two banks committing up to US$162 million across all project phases.

• The EBRD lending benefits from a partial EU guarantee under the InvestEU Framework for Sustainable Transition.

• The facility, comprising an automated warehouse and adjacent manual warehouse, is expected to cut energy intensity by around 50 percent compared with conventional cold stores of similar size.

• The project expands NewCold's Central and Eastern European network following the completion of two facilities in Poland last year. (EBRD)

Kaleris unveils ColdLink system at Manifest 2026 Logistics software provider Kaleris introduced ColdLink, a suite of cold chain orchestration tools that integrate its transportation management system (TMS), yard management system (YMS) and IoT sensors.

• ColdLink creates an automatic feedback loop between yard, transport and warehouse systems to reduce losses, accelerate throughput and strengthen regulatory compliance.

• The system flags high‑priority loads and streams reefer temperature and fuel data into a digital yard; if a load shows a temperature variance or low fuel, the YMS can override normal sequencing and trigger a First‑Expiring‑First‑Out (FEFO) move.

• Additional modules provide pre‑cooling planning, commodity separation and inbound–outbound continuity to minimize spoilage.

• Kaleris vice‑president Brian Taylor said ColdLink allows alerts to be converted into immediate action across systems. (Globe Newswire)

Oakland International expands Irish freight division to boost cross‑border cold chain flows UK‑Irish logistics provider Oakland International has expanded its Oakland International Freight division, strengthening its presence in Ireland and offering fully integrated temperature‑controlled logistics across Ireland, the UK, continental Europe and global markets.

• The division coordinates complex road and sea movements, handling full and part‑load consignments of refrigerated, ambient and oversized cargo for food producers, retailers and pharmaceutical clients.

• It also provides customs compliance support for imports, exports and transit procedures, helping customers navigate evolving regulations.

• International freight director Enda Maher said combining local expertise with global reach will allow customers to move goods more efficiently and with greater visibility. (Cold Chain News)

Other headlines

Vertical Cold Storage's Indianapolis facility earned organic certification from Where Food Comes From Organic, Inc., enabling customers to consolidate organic SKUs into a single location as part of the company's expanding value-added services.

CPKC and Americold have partnered to offer temperature controlled rail service from Kansas City to Mexico, with onsite USDA and SENASICA inspections that bypass border bottlenecks and streamline cross-border perishable goods logistics.

Corvus Robotics launched Corvus One for Cold Chain, an autonomous drone system for inventory scanning in freezer environments down to -20°F, already in use at Kroger to reduce manual cycle counts and worker exposure to sub-zero conditions.

FridgeXpress delivered its first 18-tonne refrigerated HGV, a dual-temperature DAF XB 260 built for Spanish food distributor Brindisa, marking the company's expansion beyond light commercial vehicles into the HGV market.

That’s it for this week!

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