Throughput figures for the quays of Bremen have been rising. In the period from January to June 2016, seacargo throughput rose 37.45 million tonnes – compared to the first six months of 2015, representing an increase of nearly 900,000 tonnes, or 2.4 percent.
Container logistics saw an even bigger increase, with volumes up 3.9 percent. “Although the global conditions have not improved, the Bremen ports have returned to a path of growth,” said Port Senator Martin Günthner commenting on the results.
The senator is particularly satisfied with the recent development in container handling – the key business of the twin ports – showing an increase of more than 100,000 standard containers to 2.84 million TEU (first six months of 2015: 2.74 million TEU).
The container growth of almost four percent was mainly driven by a significant upturn during the second quarter of the year. In the first three months of 2016, the increase was 2.2 percent. With approximately 496,000 TEU the best monthly result of the year until now was achieved at the Weser in April.
The vehicle sector has developed a little less positively. The number of cars handled in the first six months dropped by 4.9 percent from 1.07 million to 1.015 million units.
The growth achieved in the container sector meant a significant boost to the port of Bremerhaven in the first six months of the year. Volume handled at the Weser estuary rose by 3.6 percent to 31.44 million tonnes (January to June 2015: 30.34 million tonnes). The plants in the city of Bremen on the other hand saw a decline by 3.7 percent from 6.23 to 6.0 million tonnes.
In the first half of 2016, a total of 3,583 commercial vessels have called the ports of Bremerhaven and Bremen. This was 2.7 percent more than in the same period of the previous year (3,489).
