Despite difficult market conditions, Lübecker Hafen-Gesellschaft (LHG) closed 2024 with a two percent increase in total throughput.
A total cargo volume of 21.6 million tons was moved across the quayside. The handling of rolling cargo remained the LHG‘s main business in 2024.
At just under 890,000 loading units, it was almost exactly the same as the previous year. Paper and cardboard increased by 23% to more than 1 million tons.
Container volumes rose by 8%. In contrast, the handling of new vehicles fell by 18% to 47,000 units due to market conditions. The number of ferry passengers rose slightly to 504,000, carrying 191,000 cars, 2% more than in the previous year.
10% more handling of trailers and containers
LHG’s intermodal division developed particularly positively: At the facility of the subsidiary Baltic Rail Gate (BRG) on the Skandinavienkai in Lübeck-Travemünde, the handling of trailers and containers increased by 10% to over 124,000 units.
The LHG has already responded to the high growth rates of the intermodal terminal: The expansion work was successfully completed at the turn of the year. Following official acceptance, six tracks, each 740 metres long, are now available. This will increase capacity to up to 240,000 trailers and containers per year following the addition of a third gantry crane, which is planned for the current year.
LHG Managing Director Sebastian Jürgens expects similar handling figures for 2025: “However, the high-volume forest products business will remain under pressure. This is due to the structural adjustments in the Nordic forest products industry as a result of the extremely volatile market.”
LHG wants to handle more project cargo
In order to position itself more broadly, LHG will continue to push the handling of project cargo in 2025: “This includes, for example, rail vehicles for the Scandinavian market and wind power components,” explains Jürgens. “We also recently handled two transformers with a total weight of 572 tons at our Nordlandkai together with partner companies. With this record weight, we were able to impressively demonstrate our heavy load expertise. The advantages of a universal port are increasingly paying off.”
