Hamburg Senate giving EUROGATE’s westward extension priority in extending the Hamburg Container Terminal

Hamburg, 6 July 2005 +++ The Senate of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg is giving EUROGATE’s westward extension high priority in expansion plans for the Hamburg Container Terminal and will be managing financial planning for the Hamburg Port Authority with this in mind. Following lengthy negotiations, yesterday a project contract was concluded between EUROGATE and the Senate. The EUROGATE Group Board of Management thanks the Senate – particularly Gunnar Uldall, Senator for Trade and Industry, and State Councillor Gunther Bonz – for their commitment and constructive collaboration.  

This project contract will govern the westward extension of the Hamburg EUROGATE Terminal towards the Lower Elbe and will cover three separate items of work:

1. Partial filling-in of the Petroleumhafen and construction of 850 m of Elbe berths and  350.000 m² of container-storage space;
2. A doubling of handling capacity in the EUROKOMBI Rail Container Station;
3. Construction of an additional feeder berth in the Petroleumhafen.

The project contract provides that all preconditions needed for carrying out this work should be put in place immediately. EUROGATE will invest EUR 150 million in the westward extension, in addition to the EUR 200 million already planned (i.e. EUR 350 million in total), and create a further 250 jobs in Hamburg, in addition to the 500 already planned (i.e. 750 new jobs in total). The planning-confirmation process is scheduled to begin in the first half of 2006. Container handling will commence at the new Elbe berths at the beginning of 2010. As an immediate benefit, EUROGATE will gain 40.000 m² of space at once in the westward-extension zone.

Since its foundation in 1999, EUROGATE – a company in both Bremerhaven and Hamburg – has invested EUR 200 million in its Hamburg site and created 500 new jobs. Over the same period handling has doubled from 1.1 million TEUs to more than 2.3 million TEUs. By 2008 EUROGATE will be handling more than 3 million TEUs in Hamburg, reaching its capacity threshold in 2009. It is this growth which has prompted the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg to give EUROGATE top priority.

The project for the westward extension is based on an undertaking given by the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg to EUROKAI – EUROGATE’s shareholder –as early as 1997. Thomas Eckelmann, head of EUROKAI, and Chairman of the EUROGATE Board of Management, expressed his great satisfaction that the project contract has given EUROGATE more of what it needs for

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