Eurogate Group, Europe’s leading shipping line-independent container terminal operator, has forecasted a promising 2017 and reported successes at its facilities despite handling the same volume of standard containers (TEU) in the 2016 financial year as in 2015.
The group states that while the first six months of 2016 got off to “a promising start”, in the second half of the year, the turbulences in the shipping industry impacted on the total handling volume. This has meant overall container handling volumes at all eleven EUROGATE Group locations came to 14.6 million TEUs.
However, in 2016 the number of mega container ships with a capacity in excess of 18,000 TEUs calling at the German Eurogate terminals once again increased. Eurogate clears half of these vessels in Bremerhaven, the other half in equal shares in Hamburg and Wilhelmshaven.
It states that 2017 “promises to be an outstanding year for all market participants” after shipping company takeovers and the insolvency of Korean Hanjin Shipping led to a realignment within the major alliances in 2016.
At its German terminals, the group transhipped 8.2 million TEUs and has described the development at Germany’s only deep-water port as “encouraging”.
Eurogate Container Terminal Wilhelmshaven notched up 481,720 TEUs, a growth rate of 12.9%, while the Bremerhaven container terminals together recorded a throughput of 5.5 million TEUs.
The figure for Eurogate Container Terminal Hamburg stood at 2.3 million TEUs.
Michael Blach, new Chairman of the Eurogate Group Management Board since January 1, 2017, says: “We are looking expectantly and confidently ahead to 2017, a year that will bring many changes. The shipping lines have formed new alliances. We view this optimistically. For with its three North German terminals, Eurogate is excellently positioned to meet the requirements of the major shipping alliances and their mega container ships. This is not only key for the company, but for the entire North German coastal region. Our goal is clear: to successfully position ourselves in this intensely competitive environment.”
In 2016, Eurogate reported that it had increased net operating profit by 13.4% to US$83.5 million from its 2015 figures of US$73.7 million, despite turbulent market conditions.
