Following the end of the Cold War, the reunification of Germany, and the expansion of the European Union, but also after a difficult structural shift in the 1990s, Rostock began regaining importance as a trading and transshipment centre in the southern Baltic Sea.
Its geographic location as well as its good road and rail access to the hinterland saw Rostock become Germany’s leading all-purpose Baltic Sea port after 1989 increasing liquid, bulk, general, ferry and RoRo cargo capacity as a largely new area of operation. Another cornerstone of maritime tourism has emerged since reunification – cruises. And the passenger port of Warnemünde has been the most popular destination in Germany for international cruise passengers for many years.
Rostock’s Überseehafen (oversea port) is today an all-service transshipment port with a modern oil terminal, facilities for handling bulk, and general cargo. But its primary function is that of a ferry port, with adjoining terminals for RoRo and combined cargo transportation with freight-train connections to Southern and Southeastern Europe, as well as many metropolitan areas within Germany. Production plants have also successfully established themselves here, further stimulating port operations. ROSTOCK PORT is currently dedicated to restoring port facilities and developing other areas to enable it to expand its transshipment function and act as a base for the maritime trade. Attracting logistics companies and port-related industry will continue to be a focus of the Überseehafen’s economic development.
Sea-based access to the port, with a current depth of 14.5 metres, is set to be deepened to 16.5 metres over the next few years by the German federal government in order to improve competitiveness in the bulk-cargo industry. This requires deepening the sea channel. The people of Rostock will continue to ensure their port, and therefore also their city, charts the right course in the future.
