The Logistics Year 2025, Month by Month: Automation, Consolidation, and the Deposit Return System

In this episode of Rozmowy Logistyków, Piotr Skobało and Adam Sobolewski review 2025 in logistics. They cover the events that most changed the industry landscape globally, across Europe, and in Poland, along with their own take on the trends.

JANUARY-FEBRUARY: AUTOMATION AND NEW PACKAGING RULES

Żabka opened a semi-automated logistics center covering 35,000 m² near Wrocław, serving over 10,000 stores and creating 600 jobs — the investment coincided with the minimum wage rising to 4,600 PLN gross (+8%), which further motivates companies to automate. In February, the EU introduced the PPWR regulation on packaging and packaging waste, tightening recycling requirements and promoting reusable systems — companies got 18 months (until August 2026) to comply.

MARCH-MAY: AUTOMOTIVE RECOVERY AND A COSTLY DEPLOYMENT LESSON

Europe's automotive industry returned to nearly full production capacity after the chip crisis, helped by stabilizing ocean freight rates — a sign that supply chains still react strongly to cheaper transport, not just to strategically shortening the distance to suppliers. In May, pharmaceutical company Zimmer Biomet sued Deloitte for 172 million USD after a failed RPA deployment that disrupted production, raised inventory, and forced the company to lower its profit forecast — a reminder that even a player with revenue in the tens of billions isn't immune to system-rollout mistakes.

JUNE-JULY: A WAVE OF CONSOLIDATION IN TSL

French giant Jacky Perrenot acquired British Arrow XL for around 100 million pounds, cementing its position as a leading European logistics operator (13 billion euros in revenue, over 10,000 vehicles — more than Girteka's fleet). In July, the Polish Northvolt energy-storage factory in Gdańsk changed hands to Scania Industrial Batteries (Volkswagen group), planning to nearly double production capacity for electric-truck batteries — another example of vertical supply chain consolidation. July also brought a hydrological drought: low water levels restricted shipping on the Panama Canal and the Rhine, highlighting how marginal inland waterway transport is in Poland compared to Germany.

AUGUST-OCTOBER: SHARED SERVICE CENTERS, NEW RAIL TRACKS, AND THE DEPOSIT RETURN SYSTEM

Maersk opened a shared services center in Warsaw serving clients across Europe, intensifying competition for logistics talent in the capital's labor market. In September, the first Ukrainian rail line built to standard European gauge (Uzhhorod-Matovce) opened, integrating Ukraine's network with the EU's. On October 1, Poland's nationwide deposit return system for beverage packaging launched — a change that shifts the existing waste stream into new reverse logistics and opens the door for retail chains to charge fees for collecting and transporting packaging to the system operator.

NOVEMBER-DECEMBER: HEAVIER ZERO-EMISSION RIGS AND A QUIET YEAR-END

New EU rules now allow heavier (44-ton) zero-emission rigs, raising allowable payload — though European limits still lag behind what's possible in the US or Australia. The year closed quietly: inflation stayed in check (2.8% year over year), translating into real wage growth and higher holiday spending, especially in the appliance/electronics category — meaning higher volume to move in the year's final weeks.