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4. September 2020The seaports of Lower Saxony had to endure a total decline in handling of 11 percent during the Corona pandemic. However, three seaports in Lower Saxony were able to report a positive handling result.
(Oldenburg) The nine seaports in Lower Saxony recorded a handling decline of 11 percent in maritime traffic in the first half of 2020. The port group handled a total of 24 million tons of goods. The effects of Covid-19 were not reflected in the handling results of all port locations. Papenburg, Oldenburg, and Stade showed positive development.
Within the Lower Saxony seaport group, which includes Brake, Cuxhaven, Emden, Leer, Nordenham, Oldenburg, Papenburg, Stade, and Wilhelmshaven, approximately 24 million tons were handled in maritime traffic in the first half of 2020, representing a decrease of 11% compared to the same period in 2019 (27 million tons).
Different Impact on Individual Goods Categories
The handling of breakbulk cargo amounted to approximately 2.95 million tons (3.47 million tons in the first half of 2019), which corresponds to a decline of about 15%. The transport of onshore and offshore energy was hardly affected by Covid-19 in this area. The handling of solid bulk goods also recorded a decline with a volume of 6.06 million tons in the first half of 2020 (-25% / 8.11 million tons in 2019). This was particularly due to lower quantities of coal and construction materials. In contrast, the handling of liquid bulk goods saw an increase of 3% (12.3 million tons in 2020 / 11.97 million tons in 2019). The handling of fuels and heating oils contributed to this positive result. The handling of new vehicles through the Lower Saxony seaports is around 39 percent below the previous year’s level, with 557,491 vehicles handled (917,910 new vehicles in the first half of 2019).
Results of Individual Ports
The seaport Brake recorded a decline of 17% in the first half of 2020, handling 2.76 million tons (3.34 million tons in the first half of 2019). This is partly due to missing grain imports. In breakbulk handling, over 1.10 million tons exceeded the half-year result from 2019 (0.97 million tons) by 14%. This was mainly due to increased volumes of forestry products (wood).
Cuxhaven achieved a handling result of approximately 0.96 million tons in maritime traffic in the first half of 2020, representing a decrease of 49% compared to the previous year (1.89 million tons in the first half of 2019). There was a decline particularly in the handling of solid bulk goods. With 135,684 vehicles handled in the first half of 2020, the volume in new vehicle handling is around 33% below the previous year (202,138 vehicles in the first half of 2019).
The port Emden recorded a maritime cargo handling of approximately 1.76 million tons in the first half of the year, a volume decline of 23% (2.29 million tons in the first half of 2019). The handling of solid bulk goods, especially iron ores, developed positively. The new vehicle handling of 421,807 vehicles is 41% below the level of the comparison period (715,772 vehicles in the first half of 2019).
The port location Leer has so far felt the effects of the Corona pandemic only slightly. In the first half of 2020, approximately 144,000 tons of goods were handled (combined sea and inland traffic), which is 8% less than in the same period last year (156.99 tons of goods in combined sea and inland traffic). The decline is partly due to the temporary closure of hardware stores, which did not need to be supplied during this period. In fact, fewer ships than usual docked in Leer, loaded with marble pebbles and other decorative stones for hardware stores.
The seaport Nordenham registered a handling decline of -16% in the first half of 2020, handling 1.04 million tons (1.24 million tons in the first half of 2019). The handling of breakbulk goods, especially iron, steel, and wood, developed positively. In this segment, a total of 131,318 tons of goods were handled in the first 6 months, compared to 13,626 tons in the first half of 2019.
The Oldenburg port recorded a maritime handling volume of 36,782 tons in the first half of the year (34,232 tons in the first half of 2019). In inland shipping, 521,080 tons of goods were handled in the first half of 2020 (502,006 tons in the first half of 2019). Overall, this results in a combined sea and inland traffic volume of 557,862 tons, which corresponds to an increase of 4% (536,238 tons total handling in the first half of 2019).
Papenburg achieved an increase of 8% in maritime cargo handling in the first half of 2020 with 415,274 tons compared to the same period last year (385,739 tons in the first half of 2019). The inland handling in the Papenburg port recorded a volume decline of 29% (69,650 tons in the first half of 2020 / 98,655 tons in the first half of 2019).
Stade was able to present a stable half-year result in maritime traffic with 3.36 million tons and an increase of 11% (previous year 3.03 million tons). Positive developments in Stade are particularly evident in the handling of solid bulk goods, with nearly 2.17 million tons moved over the quays in the first half of the year (+23%, 1.77 million tons in the first half of 2019).
The seaport Wilhelmshaven achieved a handling volume of 13.72 million tons in the first half of the year, a decrease of 7% (14.82 million tons in the first half of 2019). Increases were generated here only in liquid bulk goods (+5%, 10.42 million tons in the first half of 2020; 9.92 million tons in the first half of 2019). At the Wilhelmshaven container terminal, 222,397 TEU were handled in the first half of the year (359,181 in the first half of 2019).
“Even in economically difficult times, the great advantage of a broadly and flexibly positioned universal port group, such as the Lower Saxony seaports, is once again evident. The group handling result could have been significantly more negative,” said André Heim, Managing Director of the port marketing company Seaports of Niedersachsen GmbH.
Photo: © seaports / Caption: Seaport Stade with 11 percent more handling
