Gothenburg Port News

The Port of Gothenburg announced its inspection vessel Hamnen is set to be converted to run on electrical power as part of the port's wider plan to slash operational emissions.In service since 1979, the 20.3-meter-long Hamnen is owned and operated by the Gothenburg Port Authority, through the Harbor Master’s Office and Harbor Master Åsa Kärnebro who is responsible for the vessel."[Hamnen] has many different duties", said the vessel's skipper, David Falk. "But essentially it’s…

A milestone for the use of methanol as a marine fuel was achieved in the Port of Gothenburg on Monday, as methanol propelled vessel Stena Germanica was the first non-tanker vessel in the world to be bunkered with methanol ship to ship.“This is a door-opening demonstration, proving that there is a feasible way to handle ship to ship methanol bunkering. This strengthens our position as a bunker hub and is also showcasing for other ports that this can be done in a safe and efficient way – not only here, but in other ports around the world as well.

Swedish container facility Port of Gothenburg is aiming to be a fossil free terminal by 2020, said its owner-operator Danish-owned APM Terminals.APM Terminals Gothenburg  launched environmental strategy  “Green Gothenburg Gateway”  which sees its terminal in the port aiming to become fossil-fuel free next year.Gothenburg Gateway is to accelerate the development of Sweden’s goods transports, having identified the need for Sweden to keep pace as global goods transports grow in scale and become more efficient.APM Terminals Gothenburg is now taking the next steps towards becoming a more efficient gateway by introducing Green Gothenburg Gateway on December 6th at a launch event in front of key stakeholders.“With the Green Gothenburg Gateway concept…

In a signed declaration, the Nordic ports have agreed to cooperate, exchange information and share approaches in a number of areas relating to the environment and climate. The Port of Gothenburg has joined a collaboration with ten other Nordic ports. IBy connecting land and sea – and by being connecting nodes of global trade and world economy – ports play a vital role in contributing to e.g. UN’s Global Sustainability Goals (SDGs) and creating a sustainable future in line with the Paris Agreement.Therefore, the Nordic Ports intend to confer, discuss, cooperate and exchange information and best practices related to subjects focused on but not necessarily limited to environmental issues with a main focus on SDGs connected to: Energy Use and Alternative Energy Sources…

The Gothenburg Port Authority recently launched a data system designed to coordinate and monitor work at the Port of Gothenburg Energy Port, the largest open access energy terminal in Sweden, handling more than 20 million tonnes of energy products annually."The ultimate outcome of the digital solutions is more rapid and more efficient handling of goods - quicker, safer, and less administration," claimed the port authority in a press release.“We operate in a high-intensity environment where safety is our first priority. Still, we need to handle large freight volumes and traffic flows quickly and efficiently. With smart automation and digitized processes…

The Swedish container market had a slight downturn during H1 2019, with a 1% fall, but the Port of Gothenburg has reported a steady rise in both market share and volume.Between January and September this year, the figure stood at four per cent, due largely to continued influx of hinterland rail volumes at the port.Container traffic continues to grow at the Port of Gothenburg following a downturn in 2016-2017. The recovery was particularly noticeable in 2018 with road-based traffic from western Sweden and its hinterland gradually returning to the Port of Gothenburg.The trend continued into 2019, attributable in the main to higher volumes from the rest of Sweden.

It is now only weeks left until the UK leaves the EU. According to the current timetable, this will take place on 31 October. The question of Brexit is raised in the Port of Gothenburg.Although the road leading to this point has been long and at times rocky, the date of the UK's withdrawal from the EU is approaching relentlessly. A 'soft' or 'hard' Brexit does not matter – the UK will be classed as a ‘third country’ in relation to EU countries such as Sweden, as it will be outside the single market. In its dealings with the UK, the EU will accordingly apply third-country regulations in areas such as tariffs, customs controls, and verification…

Bunkering liquefied biogas (LBG) at the Port of Gothenburg will become easier for the shipping sector with a new agreement signed between FordonsGas and Swedegas."The new agreement between FordonsGas and Swedegas will ensure access to this renewable fuel, a move that has been sought by both shipping companies and their customers," said a press release.Shipping needs to make the transition from oil to environmentally smart alternatives. Liquefied natural gas, LNG, is currently the cleanest marine fuel available due to lower emissions of carbon dioxide, sulphur oxide, nitric oxide, and particulates.With renewable liquefied biogas, LBG, climate benefits will increase even further with the addition of net-zero carbon emissions.

According to the Port of Gothenburg, an important milestone is reached in the largest development project at the Port of Gothenburg in 40 years.The first phase of the water-based work has now been completed and construction of the 220,000 square metre terminal is due to move on to the next phase. The terminal is expected to be completed by 2025.Construction of the brand-new terminal at the Port of Gothenburg got under way in autumn 2018. Phase one of the construction began with stabilisation work. This involved the sinking of 1,500 piles into the seabed, down to bedrock level, in the lead-up to construction of the rock embankments around the Arendal bay.“It is extremely exciting to finally get off the mark in the biggest development project at the port since the 1970s…

APM Terminals, an international container terminal operating company headquartered in The Hague, said that its Gothenburg unit has launched The Gothenburg Gateway.Gothenburg Gateway will ensure that a container placed on a freight train anywhere in Sweden is loaded onto a large ocean-going vessel within 48 hours, and will shave up at least a week off the transit time to Shanghai.APM Terminals Gothenburg’s goal is for all parts of the country to have the same fast access to the world market.The Gothenburg Gateway, a new concept in Swedish logistics, combines: Fast, efficient freight trains from all over Sweden to Gothenburg, An efficient…

The Gothenburg Port Authority launched a digital solution designed to make bunkering at the Energy Port easier and more efficient.The new ‘Bunkering App’ is one of the first in the world to offer this range of functionality, said a press release from the  largest port in the Nordic countries.The Port of Gothenburg Energy Port is the largest open access energy port in the Nordic region, handling over 2,500 calls and more than 23 million tonnes of energy products each year. The Energy Port is also one of the world's larger bunkering hubs. In an effort to make the bunkering procedures easier and more efficient, the Gothenburg Port Authority has developed the new ‘Bunkering App’.The app is available to all bunkering operators at the Energy Port.

Container volumes at the Swedish port of Gothenburg were 753000 teu in 2018, a 17% rise on the previous year, the port authority said."Volumes for 2018 reveal an upturn for containers of 110,000 TEUs, a rise of 17 per cent on 2017. The number of containers transported by rail during 2018 increased by 13 per cent," said a press release from Gothenburg Port Authority.Energy products, intra-European ro-ro units and new cars all fell by one per cent, albeit in relation to the high comparative figures for these three segments in 2017, it said.Some 23.4 million tonnes of energy products were handled, a fall on the previous year of one per cent.

Swedegas, the owner of the gas grid in Sweden, conducted the first liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering operation at its new facility at the Port of Gothenburg.Gothenburg-based shipping company Terntank was the very first operator to take on  LNG at a new bunkering facility, said the Swedish owner and operator of the high-pressure gas grid.Not only liquefied natural gas, LNG, but also liquefied biogas, LBG, it added.“Being able to offer this unique opportunity represents a major breakthrough, not only in facilitating the transition to LNG, but also in gradually increasing the proportion of renewable gas,” said Johan Zettergren, Chief Executive of Swedegas, which owns and runs the facility.The facility is the only one of its kind in Sweden, it claimed.

Freight volumes passing through the Port of Gothenburg during the year to date are as follows. Container traffic is up 20% compared with the preceding year, and energy product flows remain consistently strong.A press release from the deep-water port in the Scandinavian region said that new car figures rose by 4% but now appear to be levelling off, albeit at a high level.During the first nine months of the year, container traffic increased by 20% and rail traffic by 7%, said Sweden-based Port of Gothenburg.Energy products totalled 17.7 million tonnes, up 2% on the corresponding period last year. Intra-European ro-ro traffic remained unchanged…

During the first six months of this year, container volumes at the Port of Gothenburg rose by 19 per cent, from 318,000 to 378,000 TEUs.The number of cars and intra-European ro-ro units shipped increased by ten and four per cent respectively, whilst the energy segment fell by three per cent. The figures are taken from the Port of Gothenburg’s recently published mid-year volume report.The vast majority of Swedish foreign trade takes place by sea. In the case of trade with countries outside Europe, it is most common for freight to be transported by container ship.During the first six months of the year, 378,000 TEUs (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Units) were shipped, up 19 per cent on the corresponding period in 2017.

The Port of Gothenburg has extended and renewed the port tariff discounts for vessels running on liquefied natural gas (LNG). In 2015, the Port of Gothenburg introduced an environmental discount on the port tariff in an effort to increase the number of calls by ships running on LNG. Several major LNG investments have been made since then, including initiatives by a number of Swedish shipping companies. This has had a positive impact on the environment, including reduced emissions of sulphur dioxide, particles and nitric oxide into the air in western Sweden. "The Gothenburg Port Authority is now set to extend the discount period and is already outlining a renewed environmental discount," says a press release from the company.

As part of the Gothenburg Port Authority environmental discount scheme, vessels that report good environmental performance receive a 10 per cent discount on the port tariff, assuming they achieve a certain level according to the globally recognised environmental indexes ESI and CSI. Vessels that run on LNG receive an extra discount of 20 per cent each time they call. The LNG discount is subject to a time limit and is due to run to the end of this year, although the Port Authority is considering extending the discount period. LNG is currently the cleanest marine fuel available for large-scale shipping. Use of the fuel began to gather momentum at the Port of Gothenburg in the second half of 2016.

Sweden is a role model for the global shipping community, and other countries have a great deal to learn from the work being done by the Swedish shipping industry to reduce emissions. This is one of the findings in a new report – Decarbonising Maritime Transport: The Case of Sweden – where efforts aimed at bringing about a greener shipping sector in Sweden are described as a “success story”. OECD’s International Transport Forum (ITF) published a new report –  Decarbonising Maritime Transport: The Case of Sweden. The report examines the various elements which it is stated have put Swedish shipping firmly at the forefront environmentally. “We are extremely proud that Swedish shipping has been highlighted in this way by such an eminent organisation.

During the first quarter of the year, new car exports and imports passing through the Port of Gothenburg rose by 12 per cent compared with the first quarter of 2016. The Port of Gothenburg became the number one vehicle handling port in Scandinavia, due largely to the rise in imports. The number of cars exported and imported through the Port of Gothenburg has grown steadily since 2012 and the trend appears to be holding. According to new figures released by the Swedish government agency Transport Analysis and the industry and employers’ organisation Ports of Sweden, 67,682 cars passed through the Port of Gothenburg during the first quarter of the year. This represents an increase of 12 per cent on the first quarter of 2016.

Gothenburg Port Authority has opted to keep the Port Tariff unchanged for the third year in succession. The charges for 2018 will thus be on the same level as 2015. Port charges are levied on all vessels that call at the Port of Gothenburg. The charges are based on vessel type and gross tonnage, and are used to finance a range of activities, including fairway maintenance, traffic information and port safety. The Port of Gothenburg has opted for the third year in succession not to increase the charges set out in the Port Tariff. “By doing so, we are seeking to boost growth in industry, shipping and port operations. At the same time, we want to be part of the effort to curb rising logistics costs for our stakeholders,” said Magnus Kårestedt, Gothenburg Port Authority Chief Executive.

Container volumes at the Port of Gothenburg remain at historically low levels. Q3 figures show a fall of 28 per cent compared with the same period last year, even though the port has been free of industrial action and labour disputes. In contrast, other freight categories are doing well. Earlier this year, volume statistics for the first six months of 2017 clearly showed how the conflict between the Dockworkers’ Union and APM Terminals Gothenburg impacted negatively on container trade. At that point, volumes were down 22 per cent, the biggest fall in the history of the port. Even though there was no industrial action at the port during the third quarter…

The Port of Gothenburg has implemented what has amounted to a major surge in automation, governing large-scale pumping between terminals and refineries. The new system will ensure the terminals receive rapid, concise notification about when pumping can take place, and they can also see the exact cost on completion. The process will save both time and money. The Port of Gothenburg is the largest open access energy port in Scandinavia and is renowned internationally for its safety initiatives. Some 2,500 tankers call each year, handling crude oil, petrol, diesel and other energy products. “In 2016, we broke the record when 23.7 million tonnes of oil passed through the port. If it wasn’t for a scheduled maintenance shutdown, we would have more than surpassed that figure during 2017.

Ro-ro operations at the Port of Gothenburg are looking bright, with sustained growth three years in succession. There has been an increase of 10 per cent over the past year alone, with the number of units currently standing at 593,000. But there is still potential to raise the bar even further by switching a higher proportion of freight from Norway to Gothenburg from land to sea. It is hoped that closer collaboration between the ports in Hirtshals, Kristiansand, Larvik, Grenland, Risavika, Bergen and Zeebrugge will help reinforce intra-Nordic shipping, and at the same time reduce carbon emissions. Intra-European ro-ro traffic to and from the Port of Gothenburg is looking healthy…