HHLA Sees 11.8 Pct Drop in Container Volumes

German terminal operator Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA) has recorded a 11.8 percent drop in container throughput to 5 million TEU at the terminals in Hamburg and Odessa for the nine-month period of 2015, against last year’s 5.7 million TEUs.

The volume decrease resulted from the 21.8 percent drop in feeder traffic with the Baltic region, in particular the decrease of almost 40 percent in traffic to and from Russia, and from lower volumes in traffic to and from Asia.

According to the port, the operating result (EBIT) for the same period decreased by 5.6 percent to USD 135.8 million, compared to USD 143.9 million for the nine months in 2014, while revenue declined by 4.2 percent, and came in at USD 952.1 million, compared to USD 994.2 million for the same period in 2014.

Additionally, the container transport of the intermodal companies increased by 2.4 percent to 996 thousand TEU, compared to the 973 thousand TEU handled in the first three quarters of the previous year.

“The persistently difficult global operating environment that Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG is confronted with is by now having a clear impact. The resulting decrease in our seaborne container throughput contrasts with a further encouraging rise in hinterland container transport. However, the growth that we achieved in our Intermodal segment was no longer able to fully compensate for the fall in container throughput at our terminals in Hamburg and Odessa.

“We are responding to the current situation, examining our cost structures and reviewing our investment plans,” says Klaus-Dieter Peters, Chairman of HHLA’s Executive Board.

The Executive Board of Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG announced that it expects EBIT in the region of USD 164.4 million due to the weak, declining volumes in the container segment, compared to last year’s USD 185.6 million. The port addded that strong earnings growth in the intermodal segment is still anticipated.