Port of Hamburg Sets a New Record with 280 Calls

Port of Hamburg Sets a New Record with 280 Calls

Cruise Gate Hamburg (CGH) set a new record with 280 calls in the 2022 cruise season, ending it with a positive outlook.

According to a press release, so far Hamburg has received 280 calls by 49 different ships from 20 cruise lines, ten maiden calls, one christening and roughly 750,000 passengers as well as 41 calls by river cruise ships.

“After two years of pandemic-related restrictions, cruise shipping in Hamburg has made a strong comeback,” commented Simone Maraschi, managing director of CGH.

“At 280 calls the 2022 cruise season has seen the most calls ever at Hamburg, surpassing even pre-pandemic levels (2019: 210 calls). We are very happy about the high demand for cruises departing from Hamburg. For us, it is proof that the enormous efforts and the adaptability demonstrated by the entire industry during the COVID-19 pandemic are truly appreciated.”

CGH is expecting an even better cruise season in 2023. The port expects another record number of calls (283) and a further 37 calls by river cruise ships.

Apart from that, cruise fans in Hamburg can look forward to multiple entertainment events including eight maiden calls scheduled for 2023 as well as a celebration of the 834th port anniversary. 

Hamburg is also working on strengthening its position as one of Europe’s most sustainable ports. 

Jens Meier, CEO of the Hamburg Port Authority AöR, said: “Ports play a crucial role in decarbonization and keeping the air clean. Shore-side electricity enables us to significantly reduce ships’ emissions while they are docking at the Port of Hamburg.

“By rapidly expanding its shore power facilities, the Port of Hamburg shows its commitment to protecting the environment and takes account of the expectations Hamburg’s citizens have of a city port. We are looking forward to being one of Europe’s first ports to offer both cruise ships and container vessels shore-based power at the berth in 2025.”

In 2022, 30 cruise ships relied on the Altona shore power station. In 2023, 12 more ships will undergo integration tests so they can become certified and use the shore power station while they’re docked. 

AIDA To Sponsor the Port of Hamburg’s 833rd Anniversary

AIDA To Sponsor the Port of Hamburg’s 833rd Anniversary

AIDA Cruises will sponsor the 833rd-anniversary celebrations for the Port of Hamburg, taking place from Sept. 16 to 18, 2022.

The main attraction on the water will be AIDAprima on Saturday evening, Sept. 17, 2022: As the finale of the birthday party, the AIDAprima will provide a light show in the heart of the city.

“We are delighted to be the sponsor of Hafengeburtstag Hamburg for the ninth time, the largest maritime event in northern Germany with over a million visitors,” commented Alexander Ewig, senior vice president of marketing and sales for AIDA, in a prepared statement.

During the three-day event, those interested in cruising can find inspiration for their next dream vacation aboard an AIDA ship at a cruise line store set up in the port. Among the features, visitors will be able to see a replica AIDAcosma cabin. There will also be a large roof terrace with lounge chairs, along with AIDA travel consultants to provide information.

By 2022, nine AIDA ships will make 120 calls in Hamburg, The AIDAsol kicked off the nearly 12-month season on Jan. 7, 2022, and the AIDAprima will conclude the year on Dec. 29, 2022.

Hamburg Offers Port Discount to Green Ships

The Port of Hamburg announced that it is offering a 10 percent discount on port fees for cruise ships registered with the Environmental Ship Index (ESI) of the International Association for Ports and Harbours (IAPH) and performing well.

The announcement said well performing vessels would receive a 10 percent discount on port fees in the German city.

The ESI evaluates the quantity of nitrogen oxide (NOX) and sulphur oxide (SOX) released by ships as well as CO2 emissions and accounts for the potential to use shore power as well.

This data is then presented in a score from zero to 100.

Ports with an ESI-based port fee reduction scheme attract more environmentally friendly vessels and hence reduce the environmental impact of shipping in the port, said the port, in a statement. 

About 100 cruise vessels are voluntarily registered in the ESI currently. 

Strong Growth Prospects for Hamburg

Strong Growth Prospects for Hamburg

Traffic is up 12 percent year-over-year for the port of Hamburg, with 800,000 passengers expected this year.

The widening of the harbor basin adjacent to the Altona terminal has been among the items driving the good news, with additional berth assignment options now available for large ships according to Kathrin Schweppe-May of Cruise Gate Hamburg.

First time callers include the MSC Preziosa, the Norwegian Jade and Independence of the Seas.

“This year’s Hamburg Cruise Days and Blue Port are expected to see record participation of ten cruise ships calling over the weekend. Participating ships will include AIDAprima, MSC Preziosa, Hapag Lloyds’ Europa and the Europa 2, the Mein Schiff 3 from TUI Cruises, Albatros and Amadea of Phoenix Reisen, Silver Wind, as well as Norwegian Jade and Plantours’ Sans Souci – which will be the first appearance of a river vessel at the event,” said Schweppe-May.

The parade takes place on September 9, with six cruise ships leaving the port jointly.

The port has also been able to drive winter business, with the AIDAprima homeporting year-round, but set to take a break this coming winter.

There are also regular calls, as 2017 started with the Queen Elizabeth docking on Jan. 5 and is going to close with the Aurora, which calls on Dec. 31.

December has also been a hit with Hamburg’s Christmas markets and calls from British cruise lines, said Schweppe-May.

“There is a good potential for new partners for regular calls during the weekdays as we have proven with this year's debut of Norwegian Cruise Line that there is much more to come out of the world’s second largest source market,” noted Schweppe-May . “With the proof that the winter season is able to attract large numbers of passengers we are optimistic that this concept will develop further. Prime locations will with regard to the number of ships on order have to extend its seasons.”

A new cruise terminal is set to open in 2021, and will be integrated into a real estate complex including shopping, hotel, and entertainment options.

Mein Schiff 6 Christened

Mein Schiff 6 Christened

TUI Cruises welcomed the Mein Schiff 6 into its fleet with a Thursday night ceremony in the German port of Hamburg.

Latvian organist Iveta Apkalna christened the ship.

The Mein Schiff 6 left the Altona cruise terminal around 9 p.m. on Thursday night and slowing sailed up the Elbe to Elbphilharmonie (concert hall), where it positioned itself for the evening’s music programming, including a custom symphony composed just for the christening.

The music show was complimented by a light show, with the Meyer-Turku-built ship being the center piece.

Wybcke Meier, CEO of TUI Cruises, explained: “The Elbphilharmonie provides extraordinary experiences, and at TUI Cruises we strive to do the same. For us it was important to design an event that reflects these shared values. So even with the Elbe between them, the Elbphilharmonie and the Mein Schiff 6 became one.”

Will AIDA Cruises LNG barge’s hurdles hinder cruise LNG take-up?

Viking Grace Receives 1000th LNG Top-Up

by Rebecca Moore for http://www.passengership.info/ 

The regulatory challenges to launch LNG barge-based electricity supplies to cruise ships – initially to AIDA Cruises’ new ships ‒ at Port of Hamburg have been called a “total disaster”. But on the other side of the coin Viking Lines has proudly announced it has achieved 1,000 bunkerings of its ferry Viking Grace via LNG refuelling vessel Seagas.

The passenger ship industry is keen to implement the use of LNG as fuel or for coldironing, but could the struggles that LNG-powered Hummel bunker barge has faced be a barrier to the greater take-up of LNG by this sector, in particular cruise ships? 

German shipowner VDR marine director Wolfgang Hintzsche told the CWC LNG fuels summit in Amsterdam a few months ago that Hummel's regulatory struggles have proved to be "a total disaster, from the point of view of legislation for LNG bunkering". He warned: “LNG-fuelled ships simply will not come to Hamburg if we cannot sort out our bunkering problem."

The project has been dogged by in-port restrictions, the barge’s operating permit requiring it to have an expensive harbour tug on standby, engines running, during loading and for Hummel to return to a night-time berth outside Hafencity after every loading, which requires tug assistance.

And Bomin Linde has long-standing plans to launch a small-scale LNG terminal at Hamburg that could include ship-based LNG bunker supply services. It, too, says it has taken "much longer than expected" to secure approvals for its plans.

But passenger ship operators should take heart from Viking Line’s announcement last week that its trailblazing LNG dual-fuelled Viking Grace has reached a milestone after achieving 1,000 LNG bunkerings in partnership with Swedish company AGA Gas AB since it was launched in January 2013.

Seagas, which was specially built for ship-to-ship refuelling, supplies Viking Grace ‒ the first large passenger vessel to run on LNG ‒ with about 60 tonnes of LNG while the vessel is docked in the morning at Stadsgården in central Stockholm.

Viking Line highlights the smoothness of the bunkering procedure, saying that it met its needs for bunkering to occur as quickly as possible, with no interruptions, with assured deliveries and without affecting cargo handling on the quay.

Indeed, Jan Hanses, president and chief executive of Viking Line said “both the technical solution developed by AGA and the vessel’s operation have outperformed expectations”.

And Jonas Åkermark, who is in charge of the LNG marine market at AGA Gas AB, said: “There is still heavy interest in the Seagas, our ship-to-ship bunkering solution and LNG as marine fuel both in Sweden and internationally. We have a well-functioning infrastructure solution in place in Stockholm and the possibility of bunkering more vessels.”

Obviously the two are very different projects and Hummel and Seagas meet different needs, but they both underline the importance of smooth processes and infrastructure if LNG is to be successfully taken up on a wider scale by ferries and cruise ships, either as fuel or for coldironing. Hopefully the regulatory challenges thatHummel is facing will be ironed out, and passenger ship operators can take heart from the success of Viking Grace and its bunkering vessel Seagas.

Norwegian Jade charts Hamburg turnarounds in 2017

Norwegian Jade charts Hamburg turnarounds in 2017

Norwegian Jade in Santorini by Dave Jones

Norwegian Cruise Line has scheduled 19 Hamburg turnarounds in 2017, marking the first time a US operator executes a season of full turns in the north German city.

Cruise Gate Hamburg said the business was made possible by the services available with the completion of Cruise Center Steinwerder in summer 2015.

In October the new Norwegian Escape sailed from Hamburg just after its delivery by Meyer Werft.

'We are very proud that we will now regularly cruise from Hamburg for the first time. With the Norwegian Jade, we bring a very popular ship to the Hanseatic city,' said Christian Böll, md Europe, Middle East and Africa for Norwegian Cruise Line.

The cruises will be offered with 'premium all-inclusive' pricing for the German market, and Böll said Norwegian would now set the course for steady growth in that market.

The decision to homeport Norwegian Jade in Hamburg is a 'wonderful acknowledgment of our efforts and proves that we, together with the many other parties involved, have succeeded in putting Hamburg on the international cruise map,' said Sacha Rougier, md of Cruise Gate Hamburg.

Terminal operator Cruise Gate Hamburg was founded as a joint venture between Hamburg Port Authority and the Hamburg Airport. The company is in charge of operations and berth assignment at all of Hamburg's cruise terminals.

Copyright 2016 Seatrade.

Norwegian Escape at Blohm & Voss in Hamburg delayed

Norwegian Escape at Blohm & Voss in Hamburg delayed

The ship will leave on Sunday, October 11 in the evening and arrive in Bremerhaven on Tuesday afternoon, 13 October at Blohm & Voss in Hamburg, the shift is related to processes together with the docking and undocking.

In Dock Elbe 17 adjustments to the water outlet of the scrubber system and a letze inspection be carried out, among other things. In the early morning of 16 October the Norwegian Escape will arrive in Bremerhaven again the final equipment.

The handover of the Norwegian Escape to the shipping company Norwegian Cruise Line takes place as planned on 22 October. Already on 23 October, the first cruise passengers will board the ship.

The 164,600-gt construction has an overall length of 325.9 meters and is 41.4 meters wide. The Norwegian Escape will be traveling from Miami to 7-night cruises in the eastern Caribbean.

Busy May in Hamburg

Busy May in Hamburg

Hamburg is having a busy May, according to Nadine Palatz, managing director of the Hamburg Cruise Center, including several maiden calls, the 826th anniversary of the port with six cruise ships in town, and a total of 40 calls for the month and more than 100,000 passengers.

In a prepared statement, Palatz summarized the month, starting on May 1 with a call by the
MSC Splendida, the largest passenger ship that will sail from the Hanseatic city this summer. The call was celebrated with the traditional exchange of plaques between the ship’s captain and the port captain.  

Hamburg's Senator for Economics, Frank Horch, and MSC’s Executive Chairman Pierfrancesco Vago were present. The HafenCity Cruise Center also hosted a family-friendly event for visitors and ship enthusiasts with live music and entertainment.

On the following weekend from May 8 to 10, the festivities were focused on the 826th anniversary of the port. The AIDAbella, AIDAsol, Amadea, Artania, Europa 2 and Queen Elizabeth were in town. The highlight was Saturday night, when AIDA fireworks lit up the night sky over Hamburg. According to Palatz, hundreds of thousands of spectators watched the events.

Other maiden calls during the month were the Ocean Diamond on May 12, Poseidon Expeditions’ Sea Spirit on May 16, to be followed by Mein Schiff 4 on May 22.

One maiden call was also celebrated with a sea shanty: On April 30, for the passengers of the Regal Princess, a Hamburg Chamber of Commerce shanty choir performed. 

Palatz said that the chamber of commerce offers cruise companies a range of services, such as support for PR activities or welcomes with a fire boat.

“It is important to us that a ship’s maiden call to our Hanseatic city is a special experience,” said Palatz.