As a national and international trimodal logistics hub for waterway, rail and roads, the Port of Vienna is focusing on expanding its rail connections. At the presentation of the balance for the year 2017, Doris Pulker-Rohrhofer, Technical Manager of the Port of Vienna announced some new train projects. Some existing customers are planning to increase their rotations of their rail transports. In addition, more and more container trains are expected from the Ruhr area, via Hamburg, and Dettendorf but also from Budapest.
Following the record result in 2016, the Port of Vienna was once again able to increase its sales and profit in 2017. At EUR 58.1 million, the Port of Vienna improved its revenue by 2.3 per cent compared to the previous year. Earnings before taxes amounted to around EUR 14.8 million in 2017, an increase of around 16.5 per cent over the previous year. At the same time, the Port of Vienna invested a total of EUR 18.7 million in 2017, more than twice as much as in 2016 (EUR 7.9 million).
In terms of turnover volume from ships, the ports of Freudenau, Albern and Lobau achieved an increase of 6.7 per cent. In total, around 1,050,000 tonnes were handled by ship, 66,000 tonnes more than in the previous year (2016: 984,000 tonnes). 1,156 ships were handled, which represents an increase of 5 per cent.
WienCont – the largest container terminal and depot in Austria and a subsidiary of the Port of Vienna – handled around 405,000 container shipments in 2017, which is 8 per cent less than last year. The decline is justified by the fact that the plan of the port of Vienna to operate the new cargo centre Güterzentrum Wien Süd in Inzersdorf by a joint venture with the ÖBB, did not receive an approval by the Federal Competition Authority.
On the car terminal around 64,000 vehicles were handled. Although these are fewer vehicles than in the previous year, however, the length of stay of the vehicles in the port of Vienna has risen by around 20 per cent, with sales in this area recording an increase of 8.45 per cent.
Space utilisation in the car terminal has climbed from 77 per cent in 2016 to 84 per cent in 2017.
In 2018, there will be further vigorous investment and expansion. For this, the port of Vienna has earmarked an estimated EUR 11.1 million.
The largest single investment of this is provided with EUR 1.5 million euros for the planning and preparation work for the flood protection gate for the port of Albern. After the model in the Freudenau port now also the Albern port is to receive a flood protection gate. Concrete planning and preparatory work has already begun.
