In line with the rest of Sweden, the largest port in Scandinavia has remained open despite the coronavirus pandemic - and freight volumes have remained high through the first quarter of the year. This is revealed in the Port of Gothenburg’s new freight volume report.
A sudden shift in demand for Swedish imported goods in the wake of the Coronavirus has led to a need for interim storage. The Gothenburg Port Authority has produced a solution within the port’s Railport system. A number of Railport terminals with direct rail links to the Port of Gothenburg are now ready to step in as interim storage points , bringing the goods closer to their final destination.
When physical contact between members of the crew on board ship and workers at the quayside needs to be kept to a minimum, new routines are required – and quickly. At the Port of Gothenburg there are clear indications of how the Corona pandemic could accelerate digitalisation in what is an otherwise conservative shipping industry.
For the 19th year in succession, Gothenburg has been named as the best logistics location in Sweden by the trade journal Intelligent Logistik. With a nationwide rail shuttle network and growing container volumes, the Port of Gothenburg is described as being a pivotal factor in the emergence of the region as a logistics hub.
Newly published Port of Gothenburg freight figures for 2019 showed that container volumes at the Port of Gothenburg rose for the second year in succession. Container freight from the whole of Sweden is being increasingly channelled to the Port of Gothenburg by rail. In total, 456,000 TEU were transported through the port by rail - this is the largest rail volume in the port's 400-year history.
A 100 per cent renewable machine park, a doubling of rail-borne freight and time optimising operations. These are parts of a new climate strategy launched by APM Terminals Gothenburg today. The strategy supports the Port of Gothenburg climate goal of reducing carbon emissions by 70% throughout the whole of the Gothenburg area by 2030.
DFDS is bringing a new vessel into service that will strengthen the port’s offering within the intra-European ro-ro sector. The newly built Hollandia Seaways is one of the largest ro-ro vessels in the world and will increase capacity to and from the Port of Gothenburg by over 600 trailers per week.
The Port of Gothenburg has joined a collaboration with ten other Nordic ports. In a signed declaration, the ports have agreed to cooperate, exchange information and share approaches in a number of areas relating to the environment and climate.
Quicker, safer, and less administration. These were some of the key outcomes when the Gothenburg Port Authority recently launched a data system designed to coordinate and monitor work at the Port of Gothenburg Energy Port. The ultimate outcome is more rapid and more efficient handling of goods.
The Swedish container market had a slight downturn during the first half of 2019 with a one per cent fall, but the Port of Gothenburg is reporting a steady rise in both market share and volume. Between January and September this year, the figure stood at four per cent, due largely to continued influx of hinterland rail volumes at the port.
According to the current timetable, the UK is due to leave the EU on 31 October. But what does withdrawal mean for those who ship freight between Sweden and the UK via the Port of Gothenburg? And will it affect those handling non-UK bound freight at the port?
Last week, the Gothenburg Port Authority launched a digital solution designed to make bunkering at the Energy Port easier and more efficient. The new ‘Bunkering App’ is one of the first in the world to offer this range of functionality.
During 2018, 398,000 TEUs were transported to or from the port by rail. The figures were strongest during the final quarter of the year when rail-borne container freight increased by 27 per cent. “The fact that long-distance freight transport is recovering at a higher rate is a clear indication of the growing confidence in the Container Terminal throughout the country".
Port of Gothenburg freight figures for 2018 have just been compiled. Container volumes rose by 17 per cent compared with the previous year. Energy products, intra-European ro-ro* units and new cars all fell by one per cent, albeit in relation to the high comparative figures for these three segments in 2017.
The prospects for ro-ro traffic between Sweden and the continent are certainly looking bright. Volumes between Gothenburg and Belgium have increased for the ninth year in succession. Shipping companies are also in the process of expanding their networks from Gothenburg across large parts of Europe – often via the Belgian ports in Ghent and Zeebrugge, large hubs for intra-European ro-ro traffic.
Freight volumes passing through the Port of Gothenburg during the year to date are as follows. Container traffic is up 20% compared with the preceding year, and energy product flows remain consistently strong. New car figures rose by 4% but now appear to be levelling off, albeit at a high level.
During the first six months of this year, container volumes at the Port of Gothenburg rose by 19 per cent, from 318,000 to 378,000 TEUs. The number of cars and intra-European ro-ro* units shipped increased by ten and four per cent respectively, whilst the energy segment fell by three per cent. The figures are taken from the Port of Gothenburg’s recently published mid-year volume report.
In 2015, the Port of Gothenburg introduced an environmental discount on the port tariff in an effort to increase the number of calls by ships running on liquefied natural gas (LNG). The Gothenburg Port Authority is now set to extend the discount period and is already outlining a renewed environmental discount.
Swedegas, which is currently constructing a permanent LNG facility at the Port of Gothenburg Energy Port, has entered into an agreement with a gas supplier for the facility, which will to become operational in August.
Container volumes rose by three per cent during the first quarter of the year, up from 184,000 to 188,000 TEU. The number of cars shipped rose by 20 per cent, whilst intra-European ro-ro units and energy products increased by five and three per cent respectively. The figures are taken from the Port of Gothenburg’s recently published Q1 volume report.
