Container Handling

For years now, container handling has been the dominant segment at the Port of Hamburg. HHLA's container terminals Altenwerder, Burchardkai and Tollerort as well as the Eurogate terminal clearly show how important container handling has become for the port. At just under 87 million tonnes, containerised cargo will account for around 70 per cent of the total throughput in 2020. The share of containerised cargo in total general cargo handling (the so-called containerisation rate) is now almost 99 percent at the Port of Hamburg. The remaining share in the general cargo sector is accounted for by the handling of conventional general cargo. Container throughput amounted to over 8.5 million TEU (20-foot standard containers) in Hamburg in the crisis year 2020.

The more value-added loaded containers accounted for more than 88 per cent of container handling in Hamburg, a top figure among the North Range ports. This leaves a corresponding 12 per cent share of empty equipment routed via Hamburg. In 2020, a total of 988,000 TEU were handled empty. In addition to the empty container depots available on site, Hamburg's close-meshed and high-frequency intermodal connections are also an advantage for the distribution of empty container equipment to the locations with corresponding demand