Hamburg's port in the crisis: Big ships avoid the city!

In the past few months, significant changes in the operation of large container ships have emerged in the port of Hamburg. The annual costs for the fairway, which leads to the port, amount to 330 million euros. This is a significant financial burden, while Hapag-Lloyd plans to load and unload large container ships in Wilhelmshaven in the future.

The journey to the port of Hamburg is designed to be particularly time-consuming and difficult due to the narrow fairway and the deep Köhlbrand-Brücke. Captain Norbert Gühne is currently heading for the container ship "Singapore Express" to Hamburg, but could soon no longer do so, since large ships can no longer be optimally handled due to the infrastructure problems.

strategic move to Wilhelmshaven

The port in Wilhelmshaven offers favorable prerequisites for large container ships because it is deeper and close to the coast. The MSC has also announced not to send large container ships to Hamburg, but to concentrate on smaller units. Hapag-Lloyds Director for Northern Europe, Jörg Sonne, emphasizes the need to improve the handling speed and automation in Hamburg.

In addition, the Hapag-Lloyd in Wilhelmshaven is planning a new distribution center as part of a “Hub and Forward” strategy. Developments in other trade routes are also remarkable, since a decline in China's container bookings to the USA has been recorded by 30 percent, while bookings from Southeast Asia are increasing.

The challenge of operating large ships in the port of Hamburg is further reinforced by the shortcomings such as the low Köhlbrand Bridge. In order to better meet the requirements in the future, the HHLA plans to build a new 70-meter high Köhlbrand Bridge, whose completion will be sought by 2040. In addition, the HHLA invests 500 million euros in new container bridges.

In order to increase efficiency, it is also based on modern technology, for example on AI-based, remote-controlled cranes. The port of Hamburg sees its rail terminals, which is one of the largest in Europe, as a decisive advantage in terms of logistics.

Hapag-Lloyd itself recently baptized a new container ship called "Hamburg Express" and continues to expand its international capacities. Nevertheless, there have also been dark sides since 2024: 35 tons of cocaine could be ensured in the port of Hamburg, which indicates the challenges when checking freight. Overall, the port of Hamburg falls back in the European ranking, a fact that gives rise to concern.

The developments in the port of Hamburg show a clear direction to a strategic rethinking in the handling of large container ships, such as ZDF. In addition, the role of companies such as Hamburger Lloyd is caused as an important player in the shipping industry, in particular with the transfer of operational activities to Hapag-Lloyd Aktiengesellschaft on January 1, 2025.