Thread by @jpr007

The port in Königs Wusterhausen could handle deliveries for Tesla as early as next summer

This is a stroke of luck for the port and the region, as it was on the verge of closure four years ago

The port area is to be expanded by 25,000 square metres
rbb24.de/studiofrankfur…

Four years ago, no one would have dreamed that the port of Königs Wusterhausen (Dahme-Spreewald) would soon be loading components for the US car manufacturer Tesla

At the time, the port was in crisis following the end of lignite shipping

Now Königs Wusterhausen is considering whether and how it can become a trans-shipment centre for Tesla parts from all over the world via Hamburg to Königs Wusterhausen

The components that would be built into the cars, says Michael Fiedler, who has been running the port since 2018, would then arrive in Königs Wusterhausen in containers from all over the world

Containers with parts from overseas could be shipped to European seaports and roll from there to Königs Wusterhausen by goods train

The inland port has both a railway siding and a connection to the A10

The port is therefore not only used for waterway transports, but also as a transhipment point between rail and road transport

If containers were delivered by train from Hamburg or Bremerhaven, for example, they could be transferred onto trucks here

These can then drive the goods on the A10 to Grünheide, 16 kilometres away

The water connection of the transhipment centre and port, on the other hand, will probably not play a role for the Tesla business

Since the beginning of last year, the port operator has been in talks with those responsible

New logistics plans have also been developed

They also include potential growth

For example, container handling could be increased from just 10 containers a day to 100 a day

The prerequisite is a second terminal, which is already being built and should be ready for operation in just under two weeks

A third terminal is to be built on the south side

Fiedler goes on to say that the tracks are currently already working to capacity and that he expects a significant increase in traffic with the commissioning of the Tesla plant in Grünheide

Tesla brings momentum to the port

In spring 2017, lignite handling was discontinued because the Klingenberg power plant was converted to burning natural gas

This meant that two-thirds of the total handling volume was lost

Almost half of the employees were laid off at that time

Michael Fiedler took over the port management one year later

The port has been out of the red since 2020 after the lignite phase-out because it was able to win new industrial partners

Nevertheless, Tesla will give the region a special boost, says Ludwig Scheetz (SPD), a member of the state parliament

He does not see Tesla as decisive for the success of the port's reorganisation, "but of course it is a stroke of luck for us and also for the region as a whole that we can expand the business field here accordingly," says Scheetz

The goal is to produce up to 500,000 vehicles per year

Tesla boss Elon Musk also wants to build the world's largest battery factory on the site

Michael Fiedler is optimistic :

"If anyone can do it fast, it will be Mr Musk"