Port of Duisburg 2008 volume rises 12pc to 1 million TEU
The German inland Port of Duisburg (duisport) has announced its 2008 container throughput increased 12 per cent over 2007 to reach one million TEU for the first time despite a difficult economic climate in the fourth quarter.
"We owe this growth largely to the efficiency and the attractiveness of the Port of Duisburg. For years we have been growing faster than the vast majority of European inland and sea ports," said Duisburger Hafen AG's chief executive Erich Staake in a company statement.
In 2008 the total volume of cargo handled at the port amounted to 54.5 million tons, which almost matched 2007's throughput of 55.1 million tons of cargo.
The company release noted that the "extra volume moved during the first nine months of 2008 was lost" owing to the sharp fourth quarter downturn. As a result, Mr Staake predicts that the "current extremely difficult environment will cause cargo transfers to decline in 2009."
A breakdown of the 2008 aggregate tonnage results showed that the ports of the Duisport Group handled income-generating ship and railroad cargo transfers of 28.3 million tons with ship transfers down three per cent compared to 2007 at 15.4 million tons and railroad transfers up three per cent at 12.9 million tons.
General cargo accounted for 53 per cent of all barge and train shipments in 2008. It came to 15 million tons, three per cent down on 2007. Iron and steel shipments declined by an undisclosed amount.
In the bulk cargo segment, coal dropped by 8 per cent, while chemicals/petroleum products increased by more than eight per cent.
Containers remained the most important cargo, totalling 9.6 million tons, up 11 per cent, and requiring more than two million container moves. While inland barge and short sea shipping throughput decreased slightly, railroad container transfers soared by 22 per cent.
"During the last seven years we have seen double-digit combined road/rail transportation growth each year. This trend will be broken for the first time in 2009. We are confident, though, that we will do better than the market average this year," added Mr Staake.
"We owe this growth largely to the efficiency and the attractiveness of the Port of Duisburg. For years we have been growing faster than the vast majority of European inland and sea ports," said Duisburger Hafen AG's chief executive Erich Staake in a company statement.
In 2008 the total volume of cargo handled at the port amounted to 54.5 million tons, which almost matched 2007's throughput of 55.1 million tons of cargo.
The company release noted that the "extra volume moved during the first nine months of 2008 was lost" owing to the sharp fourth quarter downturn. As a result, Mr Staake predicts that the "current extremely difficult environment will cause cargo transfers to decline in 2009."
A breakdown of the 2008 aggregate tonnage results showed that the ports of the Duisport Group handled income-generating ship and railroad cargo transfers of 28.3 million tons with ship transfers down three per cent compared to 2007 at 15.4 million tons and railroad transfers up three per cent at 12.9 million tons.
General cargo accounted for 53 per cent of all barge and train shipments in 2008. It came to 15 million tons, three per cent down on 2007. Iron and steel shipments declined by an undisclosed amount.
In the bulk cargo segment, coal dropped by 8 per cent, while chemicals/petroleum products increased by more than eight per cent.
Containers remained the most important cargo, totalling 9.6 million tons, up 11 per cent, and requiring more than two million container moves. While inland barge and short sea shipping throughput decreased slightly, railroad container transfers soared by 22 per cent.
"During the last seven years we have seen double-digit combined road/rail transportation growth each year. This trend will be broken for the first time in 2009. We are confident, though, that we will do better than the market average this year," added Mr Staake.