"What about Aabenraa Port, they can do it all?" in the energy and port industry, Aabenraa Port is both talked about and asked about when you go around as a journalist. It is the opportunities due to an exceptional port depth of 18 meters that makes insiders remember the port above others.
Port Director of Aabenraa Port Henrik Thykjær is actually in the middle of a board seminar, but he is happy to take the time to tell a story that just has to come out. The port attracts tenants to the port area with great success. After the Enstedværket was finally closed and demolished, the port area had to be rented out again to new tenants, after the owner of the plant, DONG Energy, was gone.
When the port began planning the upcoming rental in 2015, the world looked different than it does today.
- In 2015, no one had yet thought about PtX and the opportunities. We expected a different process for tenants to locate here, and there were still aftershocks from the financial crisis. We had expected that the area would perhaps be fully leased in 2027, but we have been overtaken by reality. The area has all the resources needed to make e-fuels, and we could not see that at the time, says Henrik Thykjær.
The port area is already almost completely leased. The demolition and recycling company Rimeco A/S, which demolished the Ensted power plant, is one of the companies that has subsequently rented out the space.
- We can see that the entire recycling area will take up a lot of space in the future, and that is an advantage, he says.
However, there are also other companies moving in, and among them is again an energy producer.
- It ranges from local companies to an international player like Linde Gas to other tenants that have not yet been announced, says Henrik Thykjær.
Linde Gas is the world's largest industrial gas company measured by market share and revenue. Therefore, the hope of PtX production at the port of Aabenraa is obvious. The company is so far the largest tenant on the area where the Ensted power plant was located. But there are no concrete plans that the director can yet share. However, the conditions for PtX could not be much better.
- I don't know anything yet, but we have the entire infrastructure in place, and that is positive. Here I am thinking that the area has environmental class 7, which is the highest environmental classification. There is also the right electrical infrastructure and existing pipework for the district heating in Aabenraa, says the port director, who promises that only a few hundred meters of pipework are needed.
Shipping of e-fuels on the way?
Almost right in the backyard of the Port of Aabenraa, European Energi will produce electricity from a solar cell plant in Kassø, which will be used for e-methanol for Maersk's upcoming methanol-powered container ships. It is only about 15 km from the Port of Aabenraa, and that is also interesting for the port.
- It clearly makes sense to ship the methanol from the Port of Aabenraa, rather than possibly driving it to, for example, Skagen. We do not have any agreements yet, and we are ready to talk to anyone who wants to create a bunker hub. There is potential here to create Green Energy Hub Aabenraa. It can also help create jobs for the area, and that is one of our most important purposes, says Henrik Thykjær.
Another hot topic right now is the possibility of Denmark being connected to a European hydrogen pipeline. It will provide the opportunity to send the green hydrogen of the future to companies in southern Germany, where the energy need is enormous. There are also good opportunities here for the Port of Aabenraa.
- We will be well positioned in relation to the European “hydrogen backbone”. There is also enormous potential here, and it must be exploited. So there is actually a possibility that Denmark can be an energy exporter in 15 years – and we must also export that knowledge, says the port director.
Reduction of staff
Despite the fact that the priority objective is to create jobs, there are considerations that must be taken into account for the Port of Aabenraa company.
- Our entire organization must be streamlined, because the port must be operated on commercial terms. That is why we will reduce the staff by 25 percent. - says Henrik Thykjær.
The port currently has 20 employees, since five employees from Ensted Bulk Terminal were taken over on November 1 last year. Therefore, there is now a need to lay off five employees. It is by no means certain that it is the incorporated employees who are facing dismissal now.
- We have taken an assessment phase of three months, so there is a better basis for being able to assess who will stay, says Henrik Thykjær about the dismissals that are taking place these days.
Waiting for legislation
While there are dismissals right now and here, the future with a possible PtX may be just around the corner, but like other ports and energy companies, the Port of Aabenraa is waiting for the framework conditions in the form of legislation to come. The companies have already done their homework, says Henrik Thykjær.
- We hear from the players that they are ready to move when the legislation is in place, he says.
In the meantime, the general port operations for the Port of Aabenraa are already running smoothly.
- We are a supply port for all of Southern Jutland and Northern Germany of raw materials for the construction industry. It is sand, rubble, lime and cement that pass through the port in addition to grain and feed, Henrik Thykjær finally says about an already healthy business.
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