Green Logistics sees a big potential market in China due to the increasing development of Chinese industrial, transportation industries and the growing awareness of environmental protection, said experts attending a forum on Thursday in Beijing.

The Day of Logistics, organized by BVL Beijing Regional Group, German Chamber of Commerce and Beijing Wuzi University, gathered officials, experts from companies, institutes and universities worldwide to exchange ideas and experiences regarding how to covert the concept of “green” to practical logistics.

Currently, the supply chain in China faces lots of problems, including nonstandard supply chain equipment, low truck availability, long loading time and too much hand balling.

As a result, operational expenses in China’s supply chain or logistics in China account for 18.3 percent of the GDP, compared with 6 percent in Germany and 5 percent in France in 2010.

Chinese companies are becoming increasingly aware of the importance of efficiency and energy saving, said Cai Li, marketing manager with Complete and Green Mobility of Siemens Ltd. China.

“SF Express, a big name in the local delivery industry, is in contract negotiation with us,” said Cai.

To companies, Green Logistics is not just a concept, but means money.

“Green logistics is not only about environmentally friendliness but also about reducing cost, and we have more than 200 local customers,” said Matthieu Ma, marketing manager with CHEP China Company Ltd, a leading pallet and container leasing company.

“Supplying chain management practices and strategies that reduce the environmental and energy footprint of freight distribution is an irreversible trend,” said Jean Wang, spokesperson for BVL Beijing Regional Group.