Connemann and Ploß intend to hold talks in Berlin

Der Koordinator der Bundesregierung für die maritime Wirtschaft und Tourismus, Dr. Christoph Ploß und die CDU-Bundestagsabgeordnete Gitta Connemann wollen sich in Berlin dafür einsetzen, dass die Planungen zum Bau einer zweiten Eisenbahnklappbrücke in Emden wieder Fahrt aufnehmen. Das sagten Connemann und Ploß bei ihrem Besuch im Emden Hafen. Die beiden Bundespolitiker besuchten dort die Emder Hafenförderungsgesellschaft e. V. (EHFG). 

The Emden port industry considers the construction of the bridge to be urgently necessary to ensure that the port of Emden is accessible at all times. “This is particularly important for vehicle handling in our port, because all vehicle transports destined for export pass through this bottleneck by rail, and conversely, all imports for the European market also pass through here,” says Manfred de Vries, deputy chairman of the EHFG and managing director of Autoport Emden GmbH. 

A year ago, Deutsche Bahn AG presented a feasibility study that it had commissioned on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Transport (BMV). The study concluded that the construction of the second bridge was technically feasible. However, since the study was presented a good year ago, there has been no discernible progress in the planning process. Now Connemann and Ploß want to resume talks with the BMV.

During a trip on the traditional ship “Ems” through the outer and inner harbor in Emden, the two CDU politicians also learned about the status of plans to deepen the Outer Ems and about the handling of forestry products for the paper industry in Dörpen. 

The development of the port of Emden into a hub for the wind power industry was a major focus of the tour. Timo Siebahn, Chairman of the EHFG Supervisory Board and Managing Director of epas, explained the plans that Emden will pursue on its way to becoming an “offshore gateway” as an important port for the energy transition. This was music to the ears of Connemann, who emphasized: “Functioning and highly frequented ports not only help individual regions. The economy of our entire country benefits from good maritime infrastructure. There is still a lot of potential in Emden in particular – that's what makes the location so attractive.”