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Port of Hamburg plans for the future

[ July 11, 2023   //   ]

The Hamburg Senate has endorsed a new development plan for the city’s port. It lays down strategic guidelines for policy in the coming years, defines the availability of land for port development and outlines strategic orientation for its future utilisation.

The Plan considers global trends, local operating conditions and social and economic developments. It defines guidelines for the required transformation processes and cites concrete areas for action, goals and measures. Individuals, companies, trade associations and chambers have been comprehensively involved in the drafting process.

The Senate said that Hamburg will rely on its existing strengths, “yet primarily on its great diversity” making it adaptable and resilient in face of economic fluctuations.

Opportunities for action include digitalisation, climate protection, the circular economy and ecology, maintenance and expansion of infrastructure, settlement and land strategy, transformation of work, e-commerce.

Special attention is given to the rail which, the Senate says, “makes the Port of Hamburg a pioneer of the climate-considerate transformation of freight traffic”.

The Port should be climate-neutral in its operations by 2040, it adds. In addition, expansion of shore power-supply for vessels will reduce emissions of harmful pollutants, contributing directly towards keeping the atmosphere clean.

Senator of economics and innovation, Dr Melanie Leonhard, said: “Hamburg is and will remain Germany’s largest seaport. This is of fundamental importance for the economic strength of Germany as an exporting economy and for supply chain security at national and European level.

“Going forward, we shall continue to operate a large, efficient universal seaport that serves these aims. Cargo handling is not an end in itself and container numbers may be an indicator, but are not the only relevant factor. Unlike other ports, Hamburg is itself a significant market and industrial base. Goods on arrival are not only transhipped, but also consumed or further processed.”

She added: “We will continue strengthening our port’s function as a value added centre and maritime logistics hub. The global environment makes major advances on digitalization, efficiency and climate neutrality necessary. We will forge ahead with start-ups and further development in parallel with these different requirements.

“In the next few decades we will require large quantities of renewable, rather than fossil, sources of energy. These will reach Hamburg via the port that we are now remodelling to be the driving force for the energy transition. Maritime logistics can therefore play an essential part in climate-friendly transport and decarbonisation of society as a whole. In Hamburg, our port is the key player for this.”

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