Free ride

Parallel to the electrification of the Oldenburg - Wilhelmshaven main line carried out by Deutsche Bahn, 4 km of feeder track and the 16-track feeder group of the port were already electrified on December 7 and officially put into operation today. This completes the expansion measures on the hinterland connection to JadeWeserPort by rail and the line is optimally equipped for handling further freight transportation.

Olaf Lies, Lower Saxony's Minister for Economic Affairs, Transport, Building and Digitalization, says: "The electrification of the rail infrastructure of JadeWeserPort and the Oldenburg - Wilhelmshaven expansion line will further optimize the seaport hinterland connection to Germany's only deep-water container port. This is a very important and long overdue step for our port and a real milestone for the connection, which not only the port industry has been eagerly awaiting for many years. An efficient and climate-friendly rail-based connection between the ports and the hinterland is a key prerequisite for the transportation of goods. Electrification of the rail line will therefore further strengthen the position of JadeWeserPort in international seaport competition. And it is the next important building block for the industrial, port and energy location of Wilhelmshaven and the entire region on the way to becoming the hub for container handling in the northwest and also for clean energy for the whole of Germany."

"As of today, we can offer our customers an efficient and environmentally friendly means of transporting their volumes by rail to destinations throughout Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Numerous rail operators have been serving JadeWeserPort for years with several frequencies per week. We assume that the proportion of rail traffic will increase in future," says Andreas Bullwinkel, Managing Director of Container Terminal Wilhelmshaven JadeWeserPort-Marketing GmbH & Co KG (JWPM).

The port infrastructure company JadeWeserPort Realisierungs GmbH & Co. KG (JWPR) worked on the planning together with JWPM as the business manager. Holger Banik, Managing Director of JWPR, thanks his team: "Everyone involved was always aware of the great importance of the electrification of the feeder track and the preliminary group for our port. The electrification of the seaport connection will have a positive impact on the volume of rail freight traffic."

Michael Blach, Chairman of the Eurogate Group Management Board, added: "The commissioning of the electrified section between Oldenburg and Wilhelmshaven is an essential prerequisite for further promoting the positive development of Wilhelmshaven as a port location. Germany's only deep-water port is thus ideally connected to important economic centers in Germany and Europe. Various rail transport companies have already announced new connections to and from JadeWeserPort for 2023. This gives us a tailwind for bold new investments and the further development of EUROGATE Container Terminal Wilhelmshaven."

Background

The 16-track "Vorstellgruppe" acts as a buffer between the container port and the hinterland with connections to important economic centers in Germany and the industrial regions of Northern Europe. Up to twelve full-length trains can be handled here at the same time. It is an integral part of JadeWeserPort's port railroad, which connects the port's freight traffic center and the terminal directly with the hinterland.