The Klaipėda State Seaport Authority and the Port of Hamburg have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to make their cooperation even stronger.
The agreement was formalised during the visit of Dr. Marius Skuodis, Lithuanian Minister of Transport and Communications and Algis Latakas, Director of Klaipėda State Seaport Authority, in Hamburg, where they met with Axel Mattern, CEO of HHM – Port of Hamburg Marketing, and signed the deal.
In the future, the two European ports, as well as the transport industry based there, will seek to cooperate by exchanging data on the transport market, promoting transport corridors between their markets with joint marketing activities and in the implementation of logistics projects.
“Lithuania is a significant partner for the Port of Hamburg’s seaborne cargo throughput and important to sea and land transport services,” said Mattern.
Skuodis noted that “there is a lot of potential for improving transportation connections, strengthening links between countries, attracting more freight flows, cooperating on various projects, and applying cutting-edge technologies.”
The Lithuanian Minister called on German companies to participate in the construction of an offshore wind farm near Klaipėda and in the development of the southern part of the port of Klaipėda, by preparing studies, technical projects, or performing contract work.
Furthermore, the closer cooperation opens many additional opportunities for the Hamburg Metropolitan Region, as the largest Baltic state has a lively start-up scene and is one of the pioneers of digitisation, according to a statement.
Michael Westhagemann, Hamburg’s Senator of Economics and Innovation, sees the potential for a fruitful exchange in the alternative energy sector. “All European countries confront the same challenge. We must observe climate targets, adapt our energy supply to renewable energies, make ourselves independent of imported energy from Russia, and organize the market launch of a hydrogen economy. Lithuania can prove to be a vital and valuable partner in these areas,” commented Westhagemann.
Klaipėda opened its first Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal in 2014, while in Hamburg, onshore power will be available for all terminals by 2024.
