Page 242 - ΝΑΥΤΙΚΑ ΧΡΟΝΙΚΑ - ΜΑΙΟΣ 2024

MISSION TO POLAND

The meetings were followed by a cruise inside the After the presentations, the editorial team was
port, and the various terminals and other port infra- taken on a tour of the port’s facilities and had the
structure, such as slipways, were presented to the opportunity to observe the multitude of Gdynia
Naftika Chronika team. Port’s different terminals.
A few hours later, presentations were made by the The last day of the trip was dedicated to the port
competent Port Authority in the buildings of the complex of Szczecin-Świnoujście in the southwest-
Gdynia Port concerning the port’s size and activ- ernmost part of Poland. This complex consists of
ities. A high-ranking executive of the Nauta ship- two ports under a common Port Authority.
building company, which operates in ship repairs The port of Szczecin handles both general cargo
and conversions, also participated in the discus- (including containers and steel products) and pro-
sions of the meeting that followed. In recent years, ject cargo, as well as dry and liquid bulk. The two
Nauta has significantly upgraded its production ports load and store food and agricultural products.
facilities and can now accommodate larger vessels A ferry terminal is situated in the southern part
than before. Present berthing facilities included of the Świnoujście seaport, which is a leader in
one wharf and three floating docks. providing ferry services to and from Scandinavia.
Cargo handling in the Port of Gdynia increased Additionally, dry, liquid, bulk, and general cargo
by 50.5% from 2016 to 2023. Specifically, total terminals operate at the port of Świnoujście, han-
cargo handling reached 29.39 million tonnes in dling cargo such as coal, ore, grain, fuel oil, etc. In
2023, which represents a 5.2% increase when contrast, the northern part of the port (outer port)
compared to the cargo volume in 2022, which in provides a modern infrastructure for LNG vessels.
turn increased by 8.2% compared to 2021. Once In 2023, the port complex handled 35.3 million
again, the increases recorded in the past few years tonnes of cargo, ranking it second in Poland and
reflect, to some extent, the redesign of the global sixth in the Baltic Sea.
flows. The ports have been implementing a comprehen-
As with the Port of Gdansk, the Port of Gdynia han- sive 3-billion investment programme that includes,
dles a wide range of cargoes, making it another among other projects, the modernisation of the
multipurpose port. Its cargo composition for 2023 LNG terminal to export and bunker vessels, the
consisted of containers (51%), grains (23%), fuel modernisation of the ferry terminal to handle
(12%), coal and coke (10%), other bulk (3%), and intermodal transport, and the construction of an
timber (1%). Therefore, the port of Gdynia seems to offshore terminal and an outer container terminal.
specialise in dry cargo, although it can also handle Finally, during the visit to the Szczecin-Świnou-
liquid cargo. jście port complex, the Naftika Chronika editorial
The Port of Gdynia’s development plans include team took part in a cruise during which it had the
deepening the approach fairway to 17 meters and opportunity to talk with various port operators and
the port’s internal waters to 16 meters, recon- other involved parties, such as Gryfia shipyard rep-
structing the outer port area to facilitate road resentatives. Gryfia operates in the field of vessel
and rail access, expanding the Liquid Fuel Han- repairs and reconstructions. It has three floating
dling Station, modernising the grain terminal, and docks, the largest of which has a maximum lifting
expanding warehouse and storage facilities. capacity of 15,000 tonnes.

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