Verband der Deutschen Hafenkapitäne (VDHK) e.V.
German Harbour Masters’ Association
The Verband der Deutschen Hafenkapitäne is registered at the district court of the Hanseatic City of Rostock.
The aims of the Association are to:
- Unite the Harbour Masters of the German seaports (including the inland ports accommodating sea ships in an association that promotes the interests of its members especially in the areas of safe, secure and environmentally sound operations in the ports.
- Promote and foster the cooperation among Harbour Masters.
- Advance the professional interests and the professional image of Harbour Masters.
- Collect, compare and distribute information of professional interest to the members.
Regular Members of the VDHK e.V. are Harbour Masters and /or directors of port administrations of the German seaports, including inland-waterway ports accommodating ships larger than 500 GRT and enforcing the port regulations in a defined geographical port area.
Contact the German Harbour Masters’ Association via email.
Tasks of a Harbour Master in Germany
Depending on size, functionality and the legal framework, Harbour Masters of the German ports have different tasks to fulfil. The following gives an impression of the main tasks to be fulfilled by Harbour Masters and their co-workers:
Safety & ease of ship traffic
The primary task of the Harbour Master is to arrange for a safe and easy flow of ships traffic. This includes on a 24/7 basis receiving arrival and departure notifications from ships or their representatives and coordinating, together the federal waterway administration, the passage to and from the berths in the port.
Safety during cargo operations, especially dangerous goods handling
In the majority of ports the Harbour Masters are tasked as competent authorities for the supervision and control of rules and regulations with regards to the transport and handling of dangerous goods.
Environmental protection in the port area
To control the compliance with the various environmental regulations shipping is subject to, is often the task of the Harbour Master’s office. Together with the environmental authorities, pollution prevention and combat are also part of the tasks.
Port Security (ISPS)
Together with the police authorities implementation and supervision of the measures as per ISPS Code (International Ship and Port Facility Security Code) and relevant EU legislation is conducted.
Supervisory Authority for nautical/technical service providers
Pilotage, towage and mooring are essential for the safe conduct of ship manoeuvres. Masters of ships using these services expect a certain quality of these services. Depending on the port legislation permissions to conduct these services are issued by the Harbour Master, who also supervises compliance.
Operation of port facilities
In some ports the Harbour Master is also responsible for the operation of port facilities, e.g. cruise ship and pleasure boat facilities. Usually, the Harbour Master is also consulted to evaluate suitability of constructions in the port area.
If you would like to have more detailed information about the tasks of the Harbour Master and the port authority in a specific port, please, contact the port directly. Please use the list of port addresses below whose Harbour Masters are members of the German Harbour Masters’ Association.
German Ports
Brake/ Unterweser
Niedersachsen Ports GmbH & Co. KG Niederl. Brake
Brommystr.2
26919
http://nports.de
Bremerhaven Bremen
Hansestadt Bremisches Hafenamt
Steubenstr. 7a
27568
http://hbh.bremen.de
Brunsbüttel
Brunsbüttel Ports GmbH
Elbehafen
25541
http://schrammgroup.de
Cuxhaven
Niedersachsen Ports GmbH & Co. KG
Niederl. Cuxhaven
Am Schleusenpriel 2
27472
http://nports.de
Duisburg
Duisburger Hafen AG
Alte Ruhrorter Str. 42-52
47119
http://www.duisport.de
Emden
Niedersachsen Ports GmbH & Co. KG Niederl. Emden
Fr.-Naumann-Str. 7-9
26725
http://nports.de
Fehmarn
Scandlines Deutschland GmbH
Fährhafen Puttgarden
23769
http://scandlines.com
Flensburg
Stadt Flensburg Hafenbehörde
Schiffbrücke 37
24939
http://flensburger-hafen.de
Hamburg
Hamburg Port Authority
Oberhafenamt
Neuer Wandrahm 4
20457
http://hamburg-port-authority.de
Husum
Hafenbehörde im Landesbetrieb für Küstenschutz, Nationalpark und Meeresschutz Schleswig-Holstein (LKN-SH)
Am Außenhafen
25813
http://lkn.schleswig-holstein.de
Kiel
Hafenamt Landeshauptstadt Kiel
Bollhörnkai 1
24103
http://kiel.de
Lübeck
Lübeck Port Authority
Ziegelstraße 2
23539
http://luebeck.de
Norden
Niedersachsen Ports GmbH & Co. KG Niederl. Norden
Bahnhofstr. 5
26506
http://nports.de
Osterrönfeld
Hafenbehörde Amt Eiderkanal
Schulstr. 36
24783
http://amt-eiderkanal.de
Rostock
Hansestadt Rostock Hafen- und Seemannsamt
Ost-West-Str. 8 18147
PO Box 481046 18132
http://rostock.de
Sassnitz
Stadtverwaltung Sassnitz Hafenamt<
PO Box 11
18540
http://sassnitz.de
Stralsund
Hansestadt Stralsund Hafenamt
Hafenstr. 50 18439
PO Box 2145 18408
http://stralsund.de
Wilhelmshaven
Niedersachsen Ports GmbH & Co. KG Niederl. Wilhelmshaven
Postfach 2051
26360
http://nports.de
Wilhelmshaven
Stadt Wilhelmshaven
Rathausplatz 10
26382
http://wilhelmshaven.de
Wismar
Hansestadt Wismar Hafenamt
Kopenhagener Str, 1 Bürocenter
23966
http://wismar.de
Wolgast
Hafenamt
Burgstr. 6
17438
http://wolgast.de
Latest News & Events
North Sea Port has indicated that 54% of goods transported to the hinterland are moved by inland waterway shipping. This is the outcome of a study conducted by the port among companies throughout the port area and published on 28 November.
As a multimodal port, North Sea Port will increasingly be focusing on sustainable transport in the future, it is reported.
North Sea Port conducted research into the various transport options used by companies to move goods to the hinterland. This revealed that 54% of goods are transported by means of inland waterway shipping. 30% is loaded into lorries, whilst 9% is transported by rail. Transhipping cargo from one vessel to another accounts for 7%.
Results of this study were explained during North Sea Port’s multimodal event. At an Intermodal Marketplace, shippers and logistics intermediaries were able to find out about the rapidly expanding range of services provided by terminals and shipping companies in the port. These parties offer regular services from North Sea Port with destinations such as Antwerp, Rotterdam, Zeebrugge, Scandinavia, Spain, Italy, Great Britain, China, West Africa and South America by sea (deep-sea and short-sea), rail and inland waterway shipping.
DFDS is now using the new ro-ro ship Hollandia Seaways on the route between North Sea Port Ghent and Gothenburg in Sweden.
On 5 December, DFDS’s largest ship was officially named at the Mercatordok Multimodal Terminal in Ghent, North Sea Port.
The purpose of North Sea Port is to manage, operate and develop the 60 kilometres long cross-border port area from the Dutch port of Vlissingen to Ghent in Flanders. Within this framework, it intends to strengthen the position of the port and industrial complex in the area, both in a national and in an international perspective. North Sea Port employs 250 staff.
Hollandia Seaways can carry 450 trailers, representing a cargo capacity of 6,700 line metres. It has a length overall of 237.4 metres. With an extra floor for trailers, this new ship will immediately catch the eye when in the lock in Terneuzen or on the Ghent-Terneuzen Canal. The vessel is not only larger than the three DFDS ships which currently sail between Ghent and Gothenburg six times a week, it will be by far the largest ship in the entire DFDS fleet. This larger vessel will take the place of one of the three existing ships on the route. As a result, capacity will increase by some 600 trailers per week.
