The problems of reconciling existing tenants’ rights and agreeing compensation amounts have finally been resolved
Buss Group and Hamburg city-owned HHLA, the two leading tenants of the port area that is designated as the site of the port’s future Steinwerder Container Terminal, have finally come to an agreement on operating rights and compensation.
Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) and the senate of the city of Hamburg are still working on the basis of reaching 18M TEU/year capacity by 2015 and a key part of the plan is to redevelop the existing multipurpose facilities in the centre of the port for container handling.
However, Buss has a lease contract for two of its operations, Buss Hansa Terminal (shed 80/81) and the Kuhwerder Terminal (sheds 69-73) that runs until 2025.
Under the new agreement Buss will be able to continue these operations until 2012/13, and will also receive “substantial financial compensation,” although the amount was not disclosed. At the same time Buss is entitled to participate in the tender process for the operation of the future container terminal.
Jens Meier, managing director of the HPA, explained the procedure as follows: “We will appoint an independent organisation to prepare a relevant market reconnaissance study to establish the facts and required capacities for future container volumes.
"All the necessary preparations to build the new terminal will go ahead. We will then be ready to prepare an international tender process to find the future operator.”
Meier added that HPA had not finally decided to concentrate completely on containers and build a facility with a capacity for 3.5M TEU/throughput, as it may opt to reserve some of the space for handling other commodities. “It all depends on the market requirements,” he said.
Meanwhile plans for expansion of the existing HHLA and Eurogate container terminals are well underway. The same goes for the reconstruction and modernisation of the port’s railway system, hinterland connections, etc. However, the long-awaited deepening of the Elbe fairway is still unsettled due to opposition of the neighbouring state of Lower Saxony.
