Bruce Barnard, Special Correspondent | Apr 02, 2012 9:03AM EDT
HHLA, Hamburg’s biggest stevedore, said it expects to boost its container traffic by 5 percent in 2012 and take market share from its slower growing North European rivals for a second straight year.
Revenue, earnings and intermodal transport traffic also are set to increase by about 5 percent this year, said HHLA Chief Executive Klaus-Dieter Peters.
A 21.3 percent increase in HHLA’s 2011 throughput to 7.1 million 20-foot equivalent units boosted its share of container traffic in Rotterdam, Antwerp, Hamburg and Bremen/Bremerhaven to 19.3 percent from 17.4 percent in 2010.
Rotterdam’s container traffic increased 6 percent in 2011, and Antwerp was 2.3 percent higher than in 2010.
HHLA’s market-beating growth was driven by a 19 percent jump in Asia/Europe traffic, a 49 percent surge in East Europe/Baltic shipments and a 50 percent rise in North America traffic.
Inland rail container transport grew 11.3 percent to 1.9 million TEUs.
HHLA’s projected 5 percent growth in 2012 contrasts with an expected 1-2 percent increase in North European container traffic.
Operating profit rose 7.3 percent in 2011 to $275.3 million on revenues up 14 percent at $1.6 billion.
“Given the growth in surplus capacity at the terminals of rival ports in North Europe, the difficult situation for container shipping as a whole and the protracted delay in the dredging of the river Elbe’s navigation channel, this is a remarkable achievement,” Peters said.
Contact Bruce Barnard at brucebarnard47@hotmail.com.