Lower Saxony is investing almost €100m in the two Elbe ports in Cuxhaven and Stade. These are infrastructure projects for the energy transition.
In Stade, the largest port construction project to date, the jetty for liquefied gases (AVG) in Stade, has just been handed over to the operator ready for operation. The next multi-million euro project is now underway – in Cuxhaven.
Over the next few years, additional heavy-duty logistics areas for the handling and storage of onshore and offshore wind turbines are to be built there on 38 hectares. To this end, construction of berths 5-7 will begin this year.
The state of Lower Saxony pledged €100m for this at an early stage. “We are delighted that the federal government has decided to contribute a third of the construction costs,” says NPorts boss Holger Banik. The urgently needed berths are estimated to take three years to build.
Cuxhaven is needed for offshore expansion
The need for space is a result of the expansion targets: The current 8 GW of wind energy capacity is to be expanded to 30 GW by 2030, 40 GW by 2035 and 70 GW by 2045. Compared to 2022, this means an almost fourfold increase in offshore capacity and a doubling of onshore capacity by 2030.
The existing port buildings are being secured both on the water and on land in Cuxhaven to be well-positioned for future work in the port. In mid-April, the docking of the middle head of the sea lock began. The gate will be docked next Monday, maintained and repaired until September 2024 so that it is fit for the next six years of operation. A total of €1.7m will be spent on the refurbishment this year alone.
Construction is still underway at the LNG jetty in Stade
In Stade, work on the access roads and dyke construction for the LNG jetty for liquefied gases (AVG) will continue until October. This means that all work on the new terminal is on schedule.
The Cuxhaven branch of Niedersachsen Ports (NPorts) is responsible for two port locations with its 110 employees. The planned investments are immense: a total of around €8m has been budgeted for the maintenance and renovation of existing port facilities in 2024. In addition, around €71m will be spent on new port buildings and €20m on berths 5-7 in Cuxhaven.
