Page 10 - Port of Hamburg Magazine 03.2019

■ HAMBURG’S MARKETS
Ship size alone is no longer crucial
Interview with Dr. Maximilian Rothkopf of Hapag-Lloyd’s Executive Board on the current situation and the challenges in shipping
10 | Port of Hamburg Magazine | September 2019
Port of Hamburg Magazine: What does Hamburg as your home port mean to you?
Rothkopf: Hamburg is our home port and will there- fore always be special for us. The port offers superb infrastructure and excellent hinterland links – wheth- er through a unique rail network or excellent access to the European autobahn system. The start signal for the adjustment of the Elbe fairway was an impor- tant milestone for us: On completion of the work, even the world’s largest containerships will be able to reach Hamburg with virtually no restrictions. Ow- ing to the inadequate height of the Köhlbrand Bridge, however, Container Terminal Altenwerder – CTA, the main one for us, still remains inaccessible for mega vessels. Here what we require from the Hamburg Senate is clarification soon on the future of the Köhl- brand crossing. Access to the Port of Hamburg’s most advanced terminal plays a vital role in Ham- burg’s ability to compete against its European com- petitors, some of these extremely innovative.
Which are your core markets? Where are you head- ing?
As a globally active shipping company with 118 ser- vices, Hapag-Lloyd is actually at home all over the world. Our highest transport volumes are in the Latin America, East Asia and Atlantic sea trades. We invar- iably see growth potential wherever shifts occur in cargo flows and our customers’ demand for contain- er transport increases. Africa, the Middle East, and most especially India, for example, are vital growth markets for us. In future we shall be more heavily committed in these.
How is the current situation in shipping? What are the trendy topics?
In recent years a distinct matching has occurred between available capacity and demand. That has had a positive impact on our industry’s profitability. Yet we shall always be moving in a volatile market environment, that’s in the nature of container ship- ping. After a consolidation phase, the industry has markedly altered – Hapag-Lloyd’s transport capacity, for instance, is now more than twice as large as in 2014. At the same time, further consolidation in the industry has become less likely on account of de-
clining economies of scale. Size is no longer crucial, but instead our focus on customer requirements. Additional subjects prompting us are developments in world trade, restrictions on trading and political conflicts. In addition, from 1 January 2020 onwards, ships worldwide will only be able to use fuels with sulphur content of 0.5 percent – until now the per- mitted upper limit has been 3.5 percent. The opera- tive switch to these new fuels is currently occupying all shipowners around the world – and naturally us too. We shall be bunkering our vessels with the new fuels from the fourth quarter, so that we shall be ful- filling the new regulations punctually from the turn of the year.
What does your ‘Strategy 2023’ cover and where must you improve?
With our ‘Strategy 2023’, we are focussing on con- tainer shipping. At the same time, we aim to be No. 1 for quality for our customers, and with this under- taking, to lift ourselves distinctly above our rivals. In doing so, we want to profit from global growth opportunities and to be profitable right down the line. Naturally one can always improve – whether on reducing costs, customer orientation or of course, operational processes.
Just recently you have introduced realtime reefer container monitoring. Why is this essential?
Our new product Hapag-Lloyd LIVE is one example of how we are creating added value for our clients. Hapag-Lloyd LIVE offers realtime GPS tracking of containers, data on temperature inside containers and warnings of shutdowns – and these are just some of the functions. Our customers receive a high degree of transparency on their cargo. We shall ini- tially equip our entire reefer fleet of around 100,000 containers with this, then join our customers in de- veloping additional product characteristics tailored precisely to their requirements. This product is im- portant in that it enables our customers to monitor their refrigerated goods – whether exotic fruits, blood substitutes or sensitive pharmaceuticals – dur- ing the entire transport chain.
How does it look otherwise with digitalization?