“Sensitive” Weser quayside being renewed

The work has been planned for several years but construction has only now been given the go-ahead. It is part of what the Bremen State Senator responsible for ports – Claudia Schilling – described as a systematic effort to boost Bremerhaven’s competitive ability. Other similar renovation projects are planned.

Bremerhaven, a major container and vehicle handling centre, is part of the Bremen Ports complex which also includes the Port of Bremen further inland. Together they make up Germany’s second biggest universal port after Hamburg, handling more than 69 million tons last year.

The 320m long Kaje 66 lies directly on the Weser Estuary and is located next to the entrance to Bremerhaven’s biggest lock, the Nordschleuse. Quay 66 secures ship access to that lock and to the port’s inner harbour vehicle and other handling areas served by it and so the lock and its approaches are strategically very important.

The 372m long lock, which has a passage width of 45m, is used by some 2,000 ships a year – among them giant vehicle carriers and is still one of the world’s biggest locks. When Bremerhaven’s other main but smaller lock, the Kaiserschleuse, is unavailable, the Nordschleuse provides the only access to the Überseehsafen, where some 2.2 million vehicles are handled every year.

A consortium grouping German construction firms Ed. Züblin and Tiefbau Unterweser (TAGU) has been commissioned to carry out the Kaje 66 project by port management concern bremenports. The work is expected to take 18 months.

A new sheet pile wall is being rammed in front of the quay and the old accident-damaged former ferry berth demolished. A 4000sq.m surface area behind the quay wall is being dug out and replaced. Links are being created to adjacent northern quay sites and to the southern Columbuskaje, home of the city’s cruise ship terminal.

A €78.7 million, three-year project to rebuild the Columbuskaje has already been approved and is due to begin in 2021 after completion of the Kaje 66 renovation. Also already approved is the €43 million rebuilding of Bremerhaven‘s historic North Mole.