Transoliveira: stability in uncertain times

“We had a few difficult months. Basically we applied the brakes and our trucks stopped for three months from March to June,” explains Pedro Oliveira owner of Transoliveira, a road transport company in Oliveira de Hospital, in Coimbra, Portugal.

Pedro started the trucking business with his father back in 1991 and as he explains, “Today we have a fleet of thirty trucks travelling all over Europe and we employ forty people. We transport mainly construction material like heavy metal, cement, iron and wood from the Iberian peninsula all over Europe. It’s good value for money since the material is less expensive in Spain and Portugal.”

When the COVID-19 pandemic hit and lockdowns affected most businesses in Europe, Transoliveira was no exception: “Our family business had grown steadily over the years and you can imagine that when the strict lockdown was imposed my first concern was to ensure we don’t suffer major losses or even worse close our doors. The situation created a lot of instability and uncertainty. We didn’t know what to expect,” he explains. To manage the situation, Pedro took an EU-guaranteed loan from CGD, backed by the EIF under the EU’s Investment Plan for Europe. This enabled Pedro to mitigate unexpected shortfalls in finances, cover his bills and most importantly keep his staff despite the major worldwide economic shock. “The future looks uncertain so it’s best to play it safe,” says Pedro.

With transport playing a key role in our fast-moving world and road transport essential to so many industries, it’s perhaps not surprising that business picked up again quite fast. “It’s true that in the beginning of the pandemic our activity dropped dramatically. We even had to turn to the state for support. But business has picked up again and September 2020 has been the best month ever in terms of performance, which is something I would never have imagined. We expect to do even better once the lockdown measures are lifted and vaccinations start, but still I cannot say what the future will look like. Even when we do work full-on, there is still uncertainty…”

Company: Transoliveira (Portugal)

Type of business: transport

EIF financing: COSME LGF, EFSI

For further information about EIF intermediaries in Portugal, please refer to: http://www.eif.org/what_we_do/where/pt