Gdansk Polish container facilities progress

Financing for a major €290 million project to expand container facilities at the port of Gdansk, Poland, has been confirmed by Deepwater Container Terminal Gdansk (DCT Gdansk).

The scheme, which will be led by contractor NV Besix SA, will involve the creation of a second berth measuring 650m in length - which has been proposed to meet growing demand for deep-sea cargo services.

Planned for completion in 2016, it will increase handling capacity by up to 3 million TEU (20ft equivalent container units) a year. In April, it was confirmed that Mott MacDonald would lead its design phase.

According to DCT Gdansk, the new berth will be able to handle vessels exceeding 18000 TEU and it will be equipped with 5 container cranes. The company believed the new facility would make it the among the largest container terminals operating in the Baltic Sea.

Since its initial development in 2007, the facility’s status as a Baltic Hub has seen major expansion in cargo traffic. In 2010, it saw growth rates improve by 180%.

DCT Gdansk CEO Maciek Kwiatkowski said, “We are approaching the completion of the project’s initial phase which directly precedes the construction works.

“The decision to develop the existing DCT Gdansk container terminal is a result of growing need for more efficient and economic transport solutions in the Baltic region, able to compete effectively with the Northern European container ports’ services.”