Hamburg Port lures the 'Giants of the Seas'
The opening of a new berth at Hamburg Sea Port this year has made it possible for big container ships to load and unload there. The future of the port, however, remains in doubt as development is hampered by problems.
At Burchardkai terminal
Berth 5/6, which was inaugurated this week, is now equipped with gantry cranes that can handle ships with a capacity of 18,000 standard containers (TEU). This enables even the largest ships in the world deliver their goods to Hamburg. In theory at least…
Lack of depth
Fully loaded container ships, however, cannot reach Hamburg because the Elbe River that leads to it would first have to be dredged to provide sufficient depth. JadeWeserPort at Wilhelmshaven, which was newly-opened in 2012, is the only German deep-water harbor capable of handling such huge ships.
Big, bigger...
At present, the 'Giants of the Seas' are ships that can carry 18,000 containers. They are about 400 meters (437 yards) long, 59 meters wide and 73 meters tall. There is place for 23 containers loaded side by side on the deck of such ships.
Waiting for high tide
Even if they are not fully loaded, the latest generation of container ships can arrive in Hamburg only at high tide. This presents a major challenge for logistics. Vessels must be quickly loaded and unloaded - or they remain stranded at the harbor until the next flood, causing costs to soar.
Struggle for expansion
Without a deepening of the Elbe River, Hamburg port stands to lose out in global trade. Still it maintains its rank as Europe's second largest sea port and the 16th largest in the world. Efforts to unleash its full potential, however, are being hampered by environmentalists, who fear negative effects on Hamburg's fresh water supply.
Homegrown competitor
Wilhelmshaven's JadeWeserPort could one day challenge Hamburg's reputation. The port is still rarely used by global shipping companies. But as container ships become ever larger, only JadeWeserPort might have the capacity to handle them in future.
Future designs
The amount of fuel a ship consumes rises only marginally with an increase in its cargo. Therefore, shipyards are planning to build ever larger ships, including freighters designed to carry up to 22,000 containers.
Size matters
The trend towards larger vessels is expected to lead toward a concentration on relatively few central container ports, through which a large part of maritime trade will be carried out. Those 'trade hubs' are to become starting points for smaller cargo ships that will transport the goods further on.
A fait accompli
In the first half of 2014, the volume of trade at Hamburg Port surged by about 7 percent, reaching 4.8 million standard containers. Port operators have spent 85.5 million euros ($6.3 Million) on enlarging the Burchardkai terminal. The investment is likely to increase pressure on municipal authorities to eventually give the green light to the necessary deepending of the Elbe River.