|
Historical Review
The Beginnings
1716
Upon a resolution passed by the Ruhrort Council, a silted Ruhr bend is dredged to develop a port basin. The size of the port is approx. 7,000 sq.m. It is mainly used for transferring coal produced in the eastern part of the Ruhr region from small barges to Rhine-going ships.
1756
The Kingdom of Prussia which holds fiscal authority over the Ruhr region takes over the port. The port is extended in the decades that follow mainly under the supervision of Ludwig Freiherr von Vincke who is the President of the Province of Westphalia and the Ruhr Shipping Director. Upon the initiative of local merchants, the inner and the outer ports are built in the neighboring City of Duisburg during the first half of the 19th century. Both ports are acquired by the City of Duisburg in 1889. Following the construction of railroad lines and the development of a flourishing iron and steel industry, both Ruhrort and Duisburg accelerate the extension of their ports. Hard competition develops.
From the Turn of the 20th Century to the Foundation of
Duisburg-Ruhrorter Häfen AG
1900 to 1905
Duisburg starts the construction of the Rheinaue Port.
Three new large-sized port basins directly connected to the Rhine River are to be built in Neuenkamp. Ruhrort also develops plans for an extension of its port facilities.
1905
The proposed simultaneous extension of the national Ruhrort port and the municipal Duisburg port creates fears that ongoing competition between the two sites will result in overcapacities. These fears terminate competition and lead to the creation of a joint venture. On 1 October, the Ruhr Fiscal Authority and the City of Duisburg establish the "Verwaltung der Duisburger Häfen" joint venture. The arrangement was preceded by a local government power struggle between Duisburg, Ruhrort and Meiderich where the Ruhrort ports had already extended. This struggle resulted eventually in the merger of the cities of Duisburg, Ruhrort and Meiderich and the abandonment of the plans that had been developed for the Duisburg Rheinaue port.
1903 to 1908
The Port Canal and Basins A, B and C as well as the new
Duisburg-Ruhrort-Hafen railroad station are completed. The Port Canal also serves as access to the Rhine-Herne Canal which has been under construction since 1906.
1914
The oval Inselhafen port is largely backfilled and the Schleusenhafen port is integrated into the Vincke Canal project. The completion of the Rhine-Herne Canal ties the ports into the West German canal system.
Negotiations on the transformation of the Verwaltung der Duisburg-Ruhrorter Häfen joint venture into a joint-stock company are initiated. It is the declared objective of the incorporation of the port authority to simplify and accelerate procedures. All major decisions still have to be taken by the County Manager in Düsseldorf and the Minister of Trade in Berlin.
The First World War and the political turmoil that follows disrupt this development. The reorganization efforts are only resumed in 1924 mainly as a result of the endeavors deployed by Dr. Karl Jarres who is Mayor of the City of Duisburg and also Minister of the Interior of the German Reich.
1926
On 24 July, the Prussian State Parliament enacts a law for the transfer of the national port facilities in Duisburg to a joint-stock company. The law creates the legal conditions required for the transformation of the port authority into a joint-stock company. On 30 September, Duisburg-Ruhrorter Häfen Aktiengesellschaft is entered into Section B of the Duisburg Register of Companies (entry No. 1492), as confirmed by the Registrar of the District Court of Duisburg. Two thirds of the stock are owned by the State of Prussia and one third by the City of Duisburg.
World War Two and the Aftermath
1945
The port and its facilities are devastated, utilities have been disrupted and bridges have been blown up. 313 sunk ships are counted in the port basins alone. 96 damaged ships are stranded in the Rhine mooring areas and nine wrecks block the Ruhr mouth. Traffic has come to a complete standstill. The Marientor and Schwanentor bridges across the Duisburg ports are destroyed and the series of bridges across the Ruhrort ports which was the busiest bridgeway in West Germany before the War is in ruins. Initial work on the port facilities is temporary to enable early supplies to the local population.
1949
Progress becomes visible. Oberbürgermeister Lehr Bridge is opened on 11 March. The arch across the Ruhr River was part of Hohenzollern Bridge in Cologne and was sold to Duisburg after the end of the War in exchange for iron ration cards.
A New Beginning and a Flourishing Period in the Age of Iron and Steel
1950
As the economy of the Federal Republic of Germany
recovers fast, the quantity of cargo handled by the ports of Duisburg increases continuously. Structural changes become necessary as oil products develop growing importance, while coal transfer operations decline. In the Ölinsel area, oil handling and storage facilities are installed and connected by pipelines to refineries in the Ruhr region. The remaining bulk cargo operations are concentrated in the Kohleninsel and Schrottinsel parts of the port.
1965
Following ore, oil is the second most important cargo. Coal, iron, steel, gravel and sand, scrap and cereals are next.
1968
Two thirds of Kaiserhafen and all of Hellinghafen and Zollhafen are backfilled, as they obstruct the expansion of the port facilities.
1972
Duisburg becomes a university town. Duisburg University is founded in August 1972 in a city which had already been a university town from 1655 to 1818.
1980
The old lock between the Rhine-Herne Canal and the ports in the Port Canal no longer satisfies modern nautical requirements. A new lock is built in Meiderich and inaugurated on 7 November 1980.
A Changing Environment
1982
Nordhafen in Duisburg Hochfeld was in recent years only used for loading and unloading gravel. As gravel transfers were moved to the Innenhafen port, Nordhafen is idle. It is therefore backfilled. A major building material recycler moves to the site later.
1983
The Vincke Canal is extended. A tow of six barges pushed by a tugboat is tested between the ports of Rotterdam and Duisburg. Modern short sea shipping vessels increasingly carry general cargo, containers and trailers.
1984
The declining importance of German coal shipments have been apparent since the late seventies. The modern high-capacity coal blending and loading facility operated by Ruhrkohle AG in the Kohleninsel area was the main reason why this trend did not affect the Port of Duisburg. The quantity of coal handled still increased in the mideighties.
Container shipments which were infrequent on waterways as well as short sea shipping become important operations. In response to this development, the first container terminal (DeCeTe) and a roll-on/roll-off facility are built in the Ruhrort Südhafen area. They are inaugurated on 27 January.
1987
The renewed Ruhr lock is commissioned. The Rhine-Ruhr Terminal is started up in the Parallelhafen area on 27 May: Six-barge tows are approved by the Dutch Parliament.
Structural Change Through the Ruhr Conference
1988
The structural crisis of the coal, iron and steel industries in the Rhine and Ruhr areas is discussed at the Ruhr Conference held at the offices of the Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany on 28 February. Financial resources of a total of 1 billion DM are approved for the region. Duisburg benefits notably. Structural changes initiated during the mid-eighties are accelerated. In the wake of these developments, Duisburg also seeks approval of a free port.
1989
A railroad station for combined transportation connected to the main north/south railroad line is developed. The New Free Port and Revised Customs Act takes effect on 1 August. On 21 September, the foundation stone for the free port is laid in the Ruhrort Nordhafen area.
1990
A second roofed loading, unloading and warehousing facility spanning the water is completed in the Ruhrort Südhafen area. DFL Duisburger Freihafen Lagerhaus GmbH & Co. KG renamed DFL Freihafen GmbH is established on 10 July. The first tracks of the combined transportation railroad station are laid on 17 October.
1991
1991 is an important year for the Port of Duisburg. The Free Port of Duisburg starts its operations officially, Kühne & Nagel, the international forwarding agent, opens the first part of its Eurologistik Center in Kaßlerfeld and a new heavy cargo loading and unloading facility is commissioned. The 275th anniversary of the Duisburg ports is certainly the most important event, though, and is celebrated by a large fair and numerous other festivities between 13 and 22 September.
1991
The free port starts its operations on 2 January as scheduled.
1992
The combined-transportation railroad station is opened in the Ruhrort Südhafen area, marking a major move is to adapt the Port to the new logistics environment. The new terminal integrates railroad, highway and waterway systems at one location and facilitates the choice of the right transportation system. Containers and trailers will in future be moved from the railroad station to some 50 destinations in Germany and in other countries.
1993 to 1995
The Südhafen shore is rebuilt to improve the
waterway access of the container terminal and the combined-transportation railroad station. Following the transfer of a bulk cargo handler to a new site, the area is protected against flooding by a new 700 m embankment. Containers can now be moved quickly between ships and land vehicles over a length of 1 km.
1995
The 350,000 sq.m. inner port is sold to the municipal Innenhafen Duisburg Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH as of 31 December. The site no longer satisfies the needs of modern logistics operations and will be redeveloped for urban use.
IBA International Building Exhibition
1989 to 1999
In 1989, the Emscher Park International Buidling
Exhibition is initiated by the Government of the State of North-Rhine Westphalia to renew urban development and the environment in the region between Duisburg and Dortmund. Whereas previous international building exhibitions focused on the presentation of novel architectural and civil engineering developments or the renewal of inner cities, the objective of the Emscher Park exhibition is to promote the transformation of an 800 sq. km. industrial region into an area offering improved quality of life and quality of living under architectural, urban development, social and environmental aspects. 17 cities and two counties participate in the ten-year project which takes on the dimensions of developing a regional plan.
In Duisburg, numerous monuments of an industrial period dominated by coal and steel are during these ten years renovated for modern uses.
In the Holzhafen area, Eurogate, the symbol of the "new" Duisburg, is built to the plans of Britain's star architect Sir Norman Foster. The complex with lines which repeat the gentle curve of the port features a total floor area of 60,000 sq.m. on 16 floors.
1996
Backfilling of the last third of Kaiserhafen starts. Duisburg-Ruhrorter Häfen AG purchases the 210,000 sq.m. site of the Duisburg copper mill to build a coal importation terminal.
1997
Port Agency Duisburg GmbH, a wholly owned subsidiary of Duisburg-Ruhrorter Häfen AG, is established chiefly for marketing the Duisburg site. PCD Packing-Center-Duisburg is set up for the seaworthy packing of high-grade goods. Kaiserhafen backfilling operations continue to the Vincke Canal. The Port of Duisburg is awarded the "Inland Port of the Year" prize by the Binnenschifffahrt journal on 25 September.
1998
The PCD Packing-Center-Duisburg site is inaugurated in May.
On 15 September, Duisburg-Rheinhausen GmbH is established and the 2 million sq.m. site of the former Krupp steel mill in Rheinhausen is purchased. To develop and market the site, Logport Logistic Center Duisburg GmbH is set up on 22 December. On 16 December, the foundation stone is laid for the third container terminal.
1999
In view of the trend away from bulk cargo to high-grade general cargo which has continued for years, a strategic decision must be taken by the Port of Duisburg for the future. New shipping lines and new cargos are to be attracted to Duisburg and the site is to be developed into a Central European transportation and distribution hub. Further, Duisburg is to be networked with other major ports to stimulate cargo transfers via Duisburg.
New Standards Set by Logport
1999
Shortly after the final decision on the closure of the Krupp steel mill, the Port of Duisburg expresses its interest in the former steel mill property in Duisburg Rheinhausen for the future development of the port. Plans are proposed to extend the free port or to win logistics operators cooperating closely with manufacturers or the trade. The acquisition of the former steel mill site in 1998 represents a milestone in the history of Duisburg-Ruhrorter Häfen AG. For the first time, the company owns land on the left bank of the Rhine River. The transformation of the site into an attractive logistics center is a major challenge. Initial projections estimate that as much as 15 years may be required for redevelopment.
Logport, the company marketing the former Krupp site, commences its operations in 1999. New Wave Logistics GmbH, a subsidiary of the Japanese NYK shipping line, is the first organization which decides to move to Logport. A number of former Krupp factory buildings are converted for New Wave Logistics' new distribution center and a new building is added. P&O, the British logistics group, and Interspe Hamann, a German freighter, are also won for Logport.
In the Ruhrort port area, the Kaiserhafen backfilling operations are completed. They create 240,000 sq.m. of new tracts located in the immediate vicinity of the container terminal and the combined-transportation railroad terminal for future-oriented use.
During a trip of senior executives to the United States, cooperation is agreed between the Port of Duisburg and the International Port of Memphis as well as the Port of Philadelphia and Camden to promote traffic between Duisburg and the two ports in the U.S. A Memorandum of Understanding is signed by the port operators in Duisburg and Antwerp in the Belgian city in December 1999. This relationship is strengthened by an interest held by Duisburger Hafen in the new container terminal to be built in Antwerp. The Government of the State of North-Rhine Westphalia supports the development of infrastructural ties between the two ports and proposes the reactivation of the direct railroad service between the two cities.
2000
Chancellor Gerhard Schröder visits the Logport site on 2 February 2000 and is deeply impressed by the progress made by the structural change. Together with North-Rhine Westphalia's Prime Minister Wolfgang Clement, he is present when the P&O Group signs its agreement for its Logport operations. In the Rheinhausen port, P&O will operate the Duisburg Intermodal Terminal which it is building together with Duisburger Hafen AG for trimodal container shipments. P&O will also manage a bimodal railroad terminal built by Duisburger Hafen AG.
duisport Under Full Sails
2000
To reflect the new corporate strategy, the Duisburg port company is renamed Duisburger Hafen AG on 1 March 2000. duisport is coined as the trademark as it combines the name of the location and the function of the site.
Cooperation is agreed between duisport and ESM (Zeeland Seaports) in Middelburg in the Netherlands. The two parties plan in particular to increase traffic between the ports. The State of North-Rhine Westphalia and the Province of Zeeland support this cooperation, as an addendum to the agreement demonstrates.
The Port of Duisburg is elected for the second time "Inland Port of the Year" by the readers of the Binnenschifffahrt journal.
On 5 December, guests from Ventspils present the Latvian Free Port in Duisburg. An agreement is signed during the visit to develop a close relationship between the two ports. Further, on 5 December, the Cabinet of the State of North-Rhine Westphalia meets at the Logport site to gain an impression of the progress made. On this occasion, another new investor is presented to the public. Kühne & Nagel, the international logistics group which is already operating a distribution center in Kaßlerfeld, has decided to strengthen its presence at the Duisburg site and plans the construction of a new logistics center on a 100,000 sq.m. tract.
Development into a Central European Logistics Hub
2001
Following the successful start in 2000, the second Logistics Forum Duisburg is held on 14 and 15 February 2001. Over 700 logistics experts from throughout Europe debate current logistics issues.
At a press conference on 30 April attended by North-Rhine Westphalia's Minister of Economics, Small and Medium-Sized Industry, Energy and Transportation Ernst Schwanhold, Rhenus AG & Co. KG is introduced as a new Logport operator.
duisport rail GmbH, a railroad subsidiary of Duisburger Hafen AG, is set up in May. The new company will interconnect the Logport and Ruhrort sites and offer railroad services over a distance of some 50 km around the Port of Duisburg.
On 30 May, CM Eurologistik GmbH, a company of the Hamburg Mackprang Group, inaugurates one of Europe's largest logistics warehouses with mobile shelving at the Logport site. The EUROCenter in the Logport area, an advanced railroad logistics center, is transferred by the Duisburger Hafen Group to P&O Trans European, which will operate the center, on 18 June.
|
