Maritime Trade and Transport - HWWI

The deepening of the Elbe is to cost a total of 320 million euros and to be completed by
2010. The project approval procedure has been in progress since the middle of June 2006, and
construction is scheduled to start at the beginning of 2008. Environmentalists are against the
expansion of the lower and outer Elbe River. 53 Additional problems stem from the legal sti -
pulations that must be complied with in connection with major infrastructure projects and
which in part bring about considerable time lags between the development of a project and
its realization. The political approval processes are complicated by the fact that three regional
levels (three federal states, the federal government, and the EU), with divergent interests and
differing financial responsibilities, are involved in the deepening of the Elbe. Since it is a federal
waterway, two planning approval processes are necessary. Actions can be filed against the
planning approval process, which would further delay the deepening of the Elbe or even prevent
it for the time being.
The example of the work on the Elbe River shows that harbor expansions and improvements
in the relevant traffic infrastructure can take a long time, as the result of procedural
requirements. This means that the port locations involved cannot react quickly to increased
demand. For the Elbe River project, planning and implementation will take approximately
five years. The political discussion preceding this took just about the same amount of time.
The result is a large time lag between the political decision and the actual realization of a project.
This can result in capacity shortages for cargo handling, with a negative effect on the
competitive situation of the port, and may temporarily prevent the port from participating in
the growth resulting from the continuous expansion of world trade.
The general political and legal framework that influences the cost levels for the loading
and unloading of ships may also become increasingly important in the future. One example of
this is the implementation in specific countries of the ISPS code (International Ship and
Port Facility Code) 54 , engendering different regional cost effects, depending on whether the
transport industry or the government bears the costs.
53 See www.zukunftelbe.de.
54 The ISPS Code, in force since July 1, 2004, sets forth, among other things,
measures for ship security and monitoring (See Eckardt 2006).
Impacted business sectors
Fig. 32
Port/Logistics Shipbuilding Shipping and Marine engineering,
ship-related fishing, aquaculture,
services tourism
Distribution/Handling Shipyards Shipping companies Energy industry
Transport Sub-contractors Ship’s agents Commodities conveyance
Processing Ship suppliers Recreation, sports
Ship insurers and experts Food/food processing
Shipping banks industry
Source: N.N. (2003).
Berenberg Bank · HWWI: Strategy 2030 · No. 4
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