AARHUS: In connection with the long process towards a port expansion in Aarhus, supplementary material has been presented to Aarhus City Council - as a basis for the upcoming decision-making on the application from the Port of Aarhus. Among the material is a new report that has examined the potential and consequences of four alternatives to the so-called Outer Harbor, which is the port's proposal.
- We are satisfied that the politicians have now received an even stronger and technically very solid basis for decision-making. Although the extraordinary involvement has delayed the process, it has been valuable. We have said from the start that everything must of course be investigated as well as possible. This has now happened, says Port Director Thomas Haber Borch, who believes that the application for the Outer Harbor has been strengthened with the new decision-making basis.
It is Aarhus City Council that has determined the four alternatives, which the consulting firm HBS Economics has assessed based on whether they can reduce the area of or replace the Outer Harbor, and what economic and climate consequences are associated with each of the four alternatives, which are:
- 1. Better utilization of existing areas
- 2. Establishment of a dry port at Framlev
- 3. Cooperation with Grenaa Port
- 4. Expansion of the port to the north.
Too little area
The consulting firm concludes that none of the four alternatives, either alone or together, will be able to meet the future area needs at the Port of Aarhus.
An implementation of the first three alternatives - with better utilization of the existing areas, establishment of a dry port at Framlev and cooperation with the Port of Grenaa - they could be combined with a possibly reduced Outer Port. A dry port is a land area with a freight terminal or a transport center connected to the port via road and/or rail. This frees up space in the port itself.
Alternative four - with an expansion of the port to the north - would be considered an actual replacement for the proposal for an Outer Harbor, but with an area of 29 hectares would not be able to meet the needs of the future port.
Economy and climate
If alternative two or three are to establish a dry port in Framlev or cooperate with Grenaa Port, HBS Economics has assessed the costs in combination with a reduced Outer Harbor - and compared them to the costs of a full Outer Harbor. "For both alternatives, we find that the direct costs will be higher than if a full Outer Harbor were established," writes the consulting firm.
For alternative four with an expansion of the port to the north, the company finds that the costs per hectare are significantly greater than the costs per hectares for the Outer Harbor.
The report from the consulting firm also assesses the climate impact in the form of CO2e emissions (red. conversion factor CO2 equivalents) associated with constructing and operating the four alternatives.
For alternatives two and three with a dry port or Grenaa Port cooperation in combination with a reduced Outer Harbor, the impact is assessed to be higher than if a full Outer Harbor is established. When establishing an alternative expansion of the harbor to the north, the CO2e emissions per hectares to be significantly larger than when establishing the Outer Harbor.
The political process
The report on the four alternatives to Outer Harbor is among the latest materials that politicians and citizens can relate to in connection with the application from the Port of Aarhus for an expansion.
Preceded by, among other things, an analysis of the need for an expansion and an area needs analysis, prepared in August 2022 by Rambøll, technical background notes on CO2 in the construction phase prepared by the municipality, an employment analysis prepared in May 2022 by Incentive and a comprehensive compilation of the citizen involvement track with theme meetings and citizen conferences in January 2023.
Aarhus City Council has also established a citizen panel to hear citizen perspectives and considerations about the applied port expansion, and on January 26, at a meeting with the city council, the panel members read out their answers, in the form of letters, to the question: "How do you weigh the advantages and disadvantages of an expansion of the Port of Aarhus?" The response letters can be found via the link below.
See supplementary material about the port expansion in Aarhus via the municipality's presentation here
See the report on alternatives to the Outer Harbor here.
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