Hamburg and Montevideo Sign MOU Again

During the delegation trip of the First Mayor of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, Dr. Peter Tschentscher, Axel Mattern, Managing Director of Hafen Hamburg Marketing, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Cap. Nav. (R) Daniel Loureiro, Vice President of the National Port Authority of Uruguay.

(Hamburg) The ports of Montevideo and Hamburg have maintained close contact since 2005. At that time, they signed the first Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), which was renewed in 2013. As in the past, the international exchange of knowledge and experiences is at the heart of the cooperation. With the signing of the third MoU on August 23, 2022, a crucial point is added: the port as an energy hub. The ports will play a central role in the import and export of renewable energies, particularly green hydrogen.

“Uruguay produces almost 100 percent of its electricity from renewable energies. In the future, the country aims to produce and export green hydrogen and other renewable energy sources. The ports of Hamburg and Montevideo can help transport green energy from South America to Europe,” says Dr. Peter Tschentscher, First Mayor of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg.

Cap. Nav. (R) Daniel Loureiro, Vice President of the National Port Authority of Uruguay, also has high hopes for this cooperation and is focusing on the export of green hydrogen. The country began developing alternative energies in the 2010s and primarily works with a mix of hydro and wind energy. This will soon enable the production of a significant amount of green hydrogen.

At the beginning of the year, Uruguay presented a hydrogen strategy. According to this, the country plans to invest around 1.9 billion euros in the development of green hydrogen by 2040 and aims for an electrolyzer capacity of ten gigawatts by then. The port of Montevideo, located directly on the Atlantic, is ideally suited for export.

Furthermore, the ports also cooperate in the areas of environmental protection, disaster prevention, and security. “The Paris Agreement is very important to us. We are therefore exchanging ideas intensively on which sustainability and environmental protection measures can be implemented quickly in the ports. Additionally, the security of the ports plays a central role in our cooperation. It is always a pleasure for the Port of Hamburg to work with the Port of Montevideo,” says Axel Mattern, Managing Director of Hafen Hamburg Marketing.

Photo: © Senatspressestelle / Momme Dähne