Teleroute and SETIR, fully owned by ASTIC (Spanish International Haulage Association) created and set up Teleroute Ibérica on 14th January 2002 with offices both in Madrid and Porto.

The company was created to leverage the combined strength of Teleroute and SETIR to fulfil the local needs of its customers using Teleroute’s leading online real-time market place for road freight. Teleroute Ibérica, which will manage activities both in Spain and Portugal, is jointly owned by Wolters Kluwer España S.A. and SETIR (on a minority basis).

The new company, which is headquartered in Madrid, will be managed on an interim basis by SETIR’s General Manager, Eduardo Méndez, until a General Manager is appointed. The subsidiary office in Portugal will be operated by Maria Eugénia da Cruz Homem, previously Commercial Manager, PCS (Pinhos – Comunicações e Sistemas).

Teleroute services have been available in Spain and Portugal for 10 years, but had, until 2001, been run under licensee agreements by SETIR and PCS respectively.

"The increase in freight activities in Spain and Portugal generated by the recent growth of the electronics business is a great opportunity for Teleroute and has prompted us to make this move. Our partner has both an in-depth knowledge of the haulage business and an extensive network in the Iberian peninsula", explained François Bourgeois, CEO, Teleroute. "Combined with our expertise in on-line freight and vehicle exchange I am certain that our partnership will result in increased available liquidity for our customers doing business with us from the Iberian Peninsula".

“In particular, we are confident that our customers will reap the benefits of our alliance,” commented Carlos Pascual, President SETIR and Secretary General, ASTIC. “Our collective know-how will ensure an optimised and localised service in Spain and Portugal. By using our freight exchange service, forwarders and carriers in both these countries can save valuable time and effort, and thus gain a competitive edge in the market place."

Teleroute’s pan-European presence will allow us to share expertise and best practices with the other regions”, added Pere Padrosa, Chairman of the Board of Teleroute Ibérica and President, ASTIC. “At the same time, we will ensure outstanding personalised customer service and support from local professionals.”

Initially Teleroute Ibérica’s team of highly qualified multi-lingual staff, aim to boost both sales and customer numbers, with the intention of doubling both within the next 3 to 5 years.

Note for the editor:

About Teleroute

Teleroute, created in 1985, develops and markets the leading on-line freight and vehicle exchange for the road transport industry in Europe. With 56,000 offers posted on a daily basis and consulted by some 35,000 users, it achieves more than €50 M sales in 16 countries. It is part of the Wolters Kluwer group (www.teleroute.com).

About SETIR

SETIR S.L. specialises in offering services to all kinds of professional hauliers. It was created in 1990 by ASTIC, the Spanish International Hauliers Association, member of the IRU (International Road Union), and has currently more than 5,000 clients from all over Europe. SETIR’s Managing Director is Mr. Carlos Pascual Quirós.

About Wolters Kluwer

Wolters Kluwer is a multinational information services company with annual sales of approximately € 3.7 billion, employing approximately 19,000 people in Europe, North America and Asia Pacific. The company’s core activities are Legal, Tax & Business, International Health & Science, and Education. The Wolters Kluwer shares are quoted on the Euronext Amsterdam. The financial results for the year 2001 will be announced on March 19, 2002. (www.wolterskluwer.com).

About François Bourgeois

François Bourgeois, 37, Université de Louvain, MBA (Insead), has been the CEO of Teleroute since January 2000. He had previously been in charge of online developments at Havas (1993-1996) before joining Wolters Kluwer as Managing Director of Teleroute France (1996-1999).

About Carlos Pascual

Carlos Pascual Quirós, 59, Economics graduate, Complutense University, Madrid, has been Secretary General of ASTIC since 1977. He is also currently Managing Director of SETIR, S.L. and the General Manager of the Francisco Corell Foundation for Transport.

About Pere Padrosa

Pedro Padrosa Pierre, 36, is a Graduate in Law from the Central University in Barcelona, Graduate in Political Science and Post-Graduate in Senior Corporate Management (PADE) from IESE (Navarre University). He currently combines his position as Managing Director in Transportes Padrosa S.A. (an international road haulage company, in business for over 80 years) with his position as President of ASTIC.