Hamburg Port Authority News

The Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) has closed the port to large ships because of a strike announced by the Verdi union over wages, it said on Wednesday."Due to the massive restrictions to be expected from the announced warning strikes, the administration has decided to block the Elbe for ships requiring pilotage from around 10 a.m. today until further notice," a spokesperson for HPA said.From 5.30 p.m. (1630 GMT) onwards, such ships will no longer be able to leave the port because the crews of boats that bring pilots on board container ships are taking part in the protests…

With the founding of Lehmann Marine, a subsidiary of Höpen GmbH, a new supplier of innovative maritime products such as the COBRA battery system has entered the maritime market in 2023.The COBRA (Compact Battery Rack) battery system, which is freely scalable and tailored to maritime requirements, has several references in the shipping industry for the hybridization or electrification of vessels. Initially developed by Becker Marine Systems, COBRA has now been incorporated into Lehmann Marine, which was founded on January 1, 2023.

Hamburg Fire Fighting Vessels Dresden and Prag sport diesel-electric hybrid propulsion and battery systems from EST-Floattech.After the first 100 days of operation, operator Flotte Hamburg is reports it is satisfied with the two new firefighting ships Dresden and Prague: "Due to the full approval for the use of the EST battery system 'Green Orca 1050' on inland waterway vessels, which was already available at the start of the project, the first hybrid ships of the Hamburg fleet…

European Union countries are considering a ban on Russian ships entering the bloc's ports, aiming to tighten sea restrictions after a halt on air traffic, European officials say, a step that would further hamper Russia's commercial shipments.Britain already decided on Monday to deny entry to British ports to all ships that are Russian owned, operated, controlled, chartered, registered or flagged. Canada followed on Tuesday, saying it would shut its ports to Russian-owned ships later this week, a day after it banned Russian crude oil imports.

To achieve the goals of its clean air plan and reach an important milestone towards climate neutrality in the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, the city’s legislature has commissioned Hamburg Port Authority – HPA to supervise planning and construction of shore-based power facilities at the Burchardkai, Tollerort and Eurogate container terminals, as well as Steinwerder and HafenCity cruise terminals.In expanding shore power supply, the Port of Hamburg is setting a clear signal of greater protection for the environment…

The Netherlands-based Damen Shipyards Group said it handed over twin fireboats to Flotte Hamburg, a subsidiary of the Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) tasked with implementing low-emission shipping in the city.With 315 kWh of battery capacity, the state-of-the-art, plug-in hybrid vessels are capable of extended, fully-electric, emissions-free operations in and around the Port of Hamburg. Prag will be operated by Hamburg’s fire service while Dresden will support the HPA, the fire service and other third parties.The vessels, classed as Damen Fire-Fighting Vessels 3508, are completely new designs.

The two new fire boats of the Flotte Hamburg were ceremonially christened Dresden and Prag on September 23 by their two sponsors, Dresden's Second Mayor Annekatrin Klepsch and Prague's City Councillor for Culture Hana Třeštíková. In the presence of Hamburg's First Mayor Peter Tschentscher and CEO of Hamburg Port Authority Jens Meier, the ships then went on a short sea trial in the Port of Hamburg.Mayor Dr. Peter Tschentscher said, "The new fire boats Prag and Dresden ensure safety in the port and can run emission-free with their plug-in hybrid drives.

Ultra-luxury cruise ship Europa 2 has had its cold ironing connection certified by classification society DNV GL following testing of the undisrupted use and compatibility of the shore-to-ship power system in the Port of Hamburg.While idled due to the coronavirus pandemic, Europa 2 has been using cold ironing at the Cruise Center Altona in Hamburg for the past 30 days, reportedly marking the first time a cruise ship has been using cold ironing for a long period of time.Europa 2, with a maximum of 500 passengers requires 2.2 megawatts (MW) of power per hour during its lay time.

The Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) has ordered two more fire-fighting vessels following the delivery of modern fireboat, the "Branddirektor Westphal".As with the previous order, both vessels will be fitted with Schottel thrusters – in this case, two Schottel Rudderpropellers and one Schottel Transverse Thruster. These will enable maximum maneuverability in the restricted fairway of the Port of Hamburg.This mobility is also guaranteed in situations that require fast response times. The special vessels, operated by Flotte Hamburg, a wholly owned subsidiary of the HPA, are currently under construction at Damen Shipyards.Each of the fireboats features two rudder-propellers type SRP 150 L FP (380 kW each) with a propeller diameter of 1.10 m and a transverse thruster type STT 60 FP (100 kW).

The Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) has chosen SCHOTTEL for two more fire-fighting vessels. Each of the fireboats features two rudderpropellers type SRP 150 L FP (380 kW each) with a propeller diameter of 1.10 m and a transverse thruster type STT 60 FP (100 kW). Each of these is driven by an electric motor. The rudderpropellers type SRP 150 are equipped with SCHOTTEL’s new highly efficient SDC40 nozzle. This thruster configuration achieves a free running speed of 12 knots.The two…

Germany’s largest universal port, the Port of Hamburg, reported a container throughput of 7 million TEUs for the first three quarters of this year, representing a growth of 6.9 percent year-over-year.The climb in container handling is primarily attributable to the four new transatlantic services, plus four new Baltic feeder services. Since the beginning of the year, the new transatlantic services operated by Hapag-Lloyd and ONE have connected Hamburg with ports in the USA, Canada and Mexico.Hamburg regained market share up of 0.7 percentage points in competition with other major container ports, whose growth averaged 3.4 percent. The excellent container handling trend in the rail segment also boosted seaport-hinterland services.Transporting 2.1 million TEU in the first nine months…

Handling 135.1 million tons of seaborne cargoes (down one percent), Germany’s largest universal port can report a respectable result for 2018.Hamburg successfully asserted itself in a difficult environment, achieving a distinct advance on railborne seaport-hinterland transport. In 2018, this category accounted for totals of 46.8 million tons – up 2.7 percent – and 2.44 million TEU – up 4.7 percent.More than 60,000 cargo trains with around 1.6 million freight cars were handled during 2018 on the Port Railway network alone. This topped the record total set in 2016 and extended Hamburg’s position as Europe’s leading rail port.Jens Meier, CEO of Hamburg Port Authority, says: "The positive figures for the Port Railway are a success that we achieved together with our partners last year.

A state-of-the-art propulsion system helps to maek Branddirektor Westphal as one of the most high-tech fireboats in Europe.The vessel, operated by Flotte Hamburg GmbH & Co. KG, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hamburg Port Authority (HPA), and built at the Fassmer shipyard in Lower Saxony, is scheduled to enter service in the Port of Hamburg shortly.The new vessel is fitted with SCHOTTEL thrusters: two SCHOTTEL Rudderpropellers and two SCHOTTEL Transverse Thrusters.The Branddirektor Westphal is powered by two Caterpillar C18 engines, each with an output of 500 kW.

A delegation from Hamburg was in China from 14 to 18 May, visiting companies in Zhengzhou, Shanghai and Hangzhou. Organized by Port of Hamburg Marketing (HHM) in cooperation with the Hamburg Representative Office in Shanghai, the delegation’s tour was led by Axel Mattern, HHM’s Joint CEO, and Mathias Schulz, its Head of Market Development Asia. The delegation included representatives of TCO Transcargo, Rostock Port, Trelleborgs Hamn, Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) and Hamburg Invest. The focus was on discussions with leading import and export companies, along with Chinese logistics providers for sea and rail services. In addition, the delegation was extremely impressed by developments on the expansion of Chinese infrastructure.

Hamburg Port Authority has joined forces with Deutsche Telekom and Nokia to test 5G applications at the Port of Hamburg. "Testing of 5G is to commence in an industrial environment in the Port of Hamburg, with the Hamburg Port Authority, Deutsche Telekom and Nokia commissioning an 8000-hectare area with which to carry out key tests of various aspects of 5G functionality, including network slicing," said a press release. 5G will be tested with use cases like traffic lights management, data processing from mobile sensors and virtual reality. To provide connectivity, an antenna has already been installed on the Hamburg television tower at a height of more than 150 meters. The primary focus of the project is on testing 5G applications in an industrial setting in the Port of Hamburg.

Port of Hamburg project to redesign the Vorhafen harbor basin entrance completed, meaning more maneuvering space for big ships, faster berth assignment and improved safety of navigation. The Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) said it has officially completed the project “Redesigning the Entrance to the Vorhafen Harbor Basin”, within the schedule, both in terms of time and money. The widened Vorhafen basin access benefits both container shipping and cruise shipping. For one, the tidal…

The adjustment of the navigation channel on the Lower and Outer Elbe is the most important strategic expansion project for the Port of Hamburg. In view of the rapidly growing ships, Hamburg is dependent on adapting its seaward access to this technical development in the long term. This is the only way to ensure that Hamburg can be called at economically viable conditions and that its port remains competitive. During the oral proceedings of the last three days, the Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig intensively discussed legal and technical questions related to the adjustment of the navigation channel for containerships with a depth of 14.5 meters.

“The Federal Administrative Court in Leipzig has expressly underlined the necessity for the adjustment of the navigation channel with its decision today,” says Jens Meier CEO of Hamburg Port Authority commenting on the judgement of the Federal Administrative Court for the fairway adjustment of the Lower and Outer Elbe. “The navigation adjustments will come, now it is a question of extending the process. We will concentrate on the questions of possible fluctuations of the salinity of the Elbe and habitat protection impact assessment. According to the port, a project team will be working at full power, but the timeframe required remains in question.

High ranking state officials from Norway met with the senior management team at DNV GL’s maritime headquarters in Hamburg today. Tor Svensen, CEO, Knut Ørbeck-Nilssen, COO,  and Torsten Schramm, President of DNV GL – Maritime, shared the classification society’s experiences with liquefied natural gas (LNG) as a fuel for shipping with Norwegian State Secretary Dilek Ayhan and spoke about the potential LNG may have for the future of the global maritime industry. The visit took place…

On 19 May, Ziemelblazma Culture Palace in Riga, the Latvian capital was the venue for a meeting between numerous representatives of the Ports of Liepaja, Riga, Ventspils, Lübeck, Kiel and Hamburg. This was hosted by the three Latvian ports and Port of Hamburg Marketing (HHM). For Marina Basso Michael, Head of Market Development for the Baltic Region and Eastern Europe for HHM, and Axel Mattern, CEO of HHM, Riga was an excellent place to hold the first “German-Latvian Maritime Forum”. The two HHM representatives pointed out that current topics and challenges on the overall economic development of the Baltic region closely link all the ports participating in the event.

Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) has taken delivery of the Sauger III, a custom floating pump station by Damen Shipyards Group for supporting dredging operations. Situated 110 km inland on the River Elbe and with a tidal range of 3.6 meters, the Hamburg Port requires regularly dredging like most ports. 37 metres in length and 10 meters wide, the station features a powerful, dual pump installation and comfortable accommodation for the crew. The Sauger III was built to a completely new design following a European tender process that began with ten yards and was finally won by Damen.

The International Windship Association (IWSA) will host its annual Wind Propulsion Innovation Forum at SMM2016 in Hamburg, including an extensive agenda with expert speakers and panelists that aim to provoke discussion and debate about wind propulsion as key to the future of sustainable shipping. The IWSA Innovation Forum spans all four days of the conference, September 6-9. A broad spectrum of wind propulsion technology providers and ship development projects will be showcasing the latest developments in Rotor technology, Suction Wing, Dynarig and various Hard Sail technologies.

DNV GL has signed a letter of intent with the Hamburg Port Authority (HPA). Claudia Flecken, Member of the HPA Executive Board, and Torsten Schramm, President of DNV GL – Maritime, agreed to join forces in boosting the sustainability of the existing HPA fleet and all new acquisitions. “This letter of intent is another building block in our strategy of setting Hamburg’s harbour on a sustainable course,” says Jens Meier, Chairman of the HPA Executive Board. “We are delighted to know that DNV GL is working alongside us as a strong partner and independent advisor, supporting us every step of the way with their expertise,” Meier continues. Frank Horch, Hamburg’s Senator for Economy, Transport, and Innovation, says: “Hamburg wants to contribute to reduce emissions in the harbour.