Port of Gdansk posts strong cargo growth in 2015

The Polish Port, which made numerous investments throughout 2015, handled 35.9 million tons of cargo during the year, an 11.3 percent increase from 2014.    The Port of Gdansk handled 35.9 million tons of cargo in 2015, an 11.3 percent increase from 2014, the port said. 
   General cargo throughput at the Polish port totaled 11.8 million tons, a 5.2 percent year-over-year increase.
   The general cargo’s container segment handled 10.7 million tons, a 3.3 percent increase from 2014. In TEU terms, however, the port’s volumes dropped 10 percent year-over-year to 1.1 million TEUs.
   In addition to intra-Europe services, the Port of Gdansk is frequented by two loops between Asia and Europe: the 2M Alliance’s AE10/Silk with average vessel capacity of 18,270 TEUs, and the G6 Alliance’s LP7 with an average vessel capacity of 13,755 TEUs, according to ocean carrier schedule and capacity database BlueWater Reporting.
   The Port of Gdansk handled 14.7 million tons of liquid fuels in 2015, a 17.8 percent increase from 2014. “All Polish ports last year noted large quantities of fuel transshipment,” the Port of Gdansk said. “One of the reasons for this was the continuing large surplus of oil on the market, which in 2015 brought down the price of this raw material drastically, even reaching its lowest level in seven years.”
   The port’s coal throughput jumped 35.1 percent from 2014 to 4.5 million tons. Other bulk volumes through the port totaled 3.4 million tons, while grain volumes reached 1.5 million tons, year-over-year drops of 4.6 percent and 10.6 percent, respectively.
   Overall, the Port of Gdansk’s share in Poland’s maritime cargo handling amounted to 46.5 percent in 2015.
   Situated along the Baltic Sea, the port is comprised of the Inner Port, which is stretched along the Dead Vistula River and the port canal; and the Outer Port with direct access to the Gulf of Gdansk.
   The Port of Gdansk completed various investments throughout 2015 and will continue to invest in the port. Projects included:
     • The completion of the first construction phase of the PERN oil terminal, which will commence operations this year;
     • The commencement of a project to construct a second berth at the DCT container terminal, which is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year;
     • The completion of the extension of the intermodal container terminal in the area of the Szczecinskie Quay;
     • The opening of the port’s T1 berth at the Liquid Fuel Base;
     • The completion of the construction of a cold storage facility by PAGO in the hinterland of the DCT container terminal; 
     • The granting of contracts to upgrade the fairway in the Inner Port and modernize the quays and build a new quay in the Outer Port;
     • The initiation of a project to strengthen the base of the Coal Pier, which should be completed this year;
     • The continuation of the project to modernize the steel piles at the Ore Pier;
     • The completion of investments to improve the power supply and telecommunications system;
     • The designing of a project to expand the road and rail infrastructure in the Outer Port, which is expected to be completed by the end of 2019, was carried out;
     • And the signing of agreements by the Port of Gdansk Authority to deepen the maneuvering area between the Ore Pier and the DCT container terminal, which should be completed this year. 
   “However, this is not the end of the long, over 100 item-long list of investment projects carried out by the Port of Gdansk Authority S.A. over the past year,” the Port of Gdansk said in a statement. “In just 12 months, the PGA invested almost 100 million PLN (U.S. $24.5 million), i.e. 3 times more than a year ago. When the numerous investments made by transshipment operators and other companies operating at the port are added, the total capital invested in the port would amount to well over 1 billion PLN.”