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Upgrade to unlock Bremerhaven car potential
09 Apr 2008
A major bottleneck to continued expansion of car handling at Bremerhaven will be removed by 2010 with the completion of a €223m ($339m) project to upgrade the 110-year-old Kaiserschleuse lock.
The lock currently restricts access to the port’s vehicle handling terminal to vessels up to 185 metres – of which there about 1,000 a year, carrying 1.4m vehicles – but it is to be extended to handle vehicles up to 305 metres long.
The lock’s extension to panamax scale is the largest project of its kind currently ongoing in Europe. It is seen as a win-win situation for the port; not only will it ensure continuing viability as a car distribution hub, but the nearby Lloyd Werft Shipyard will be able to tender for work on larger vessels.
