New Vukovar harbour project was presented to potential users and local government.
New Vukovar harbour project, developed by CM Expert, a company that has already worked on similar projects for Rijeka harbour, presented its grandiose proposed project to local authorities and interested parties on April 18, 2016, in the County administration building in Vukovar.
Estimated worth of this project is 825 million US dollars, and the basis for the harbour with a working title “Bršadin” is the decision adopted by the Croatian Parliament back in 2011 on the construction of a multi-purpose channel Danube – Sava.
According to the project design, in its peak, this harbour would be able to handle more than 4,1 million tonnes of load per year, it would cover 740 hectares and it would consist of an operational coastal belt with a maximum capacity of 23 berths.
The operational coastal belt would house terminals for liquid, bulk and general cargo as well as frigo and RO-RO cargo and wood and container terminal. Business zone, storage facilities and a trading-corporate zone would be located behind the coastal belt.
Proposed harbour would be directly connected with Rijeka harbour by rail on the existing traffic corridor Danube – Adriatic. The initial project states that this would be a public-private partnership of the Government, Port Authority and selected concession holder. Project initiators state that EU member states located along the Danube should be invited, along with local and State authorities, to participate in the project as well as all corporations that have an interest in this geostrategically important infrastructural project.
Project initiators also state that neighbouring countries are already investing in their new harbours and if we do not act quickly they will take all the glory. Slovenia is, for instance, already investing in Kopar, Serbia is finishing its plans for the new harbour on the Danube in Pančevo. Some foreign investors have, apparently, already expressed interest in the new harbour in Vukovar so time is crucial.
As far as the current state of the Vukovar harbour is concerned, it is still far from achieving the numbers it had before the war. In 2015, it handled the trans-shipment of 303.920 tonnes of cargo which is 23% more than the year before. Vukovar harbour is also accepting numerous river cruise ships, 287 of them visited Vukovar in 2015 while 303 are announced for 2016 so the new modern harbour would also serve as a huge boost to tourism in the entire Vukovar area. Needless to say, new port would also bring much needed new jobs and employment opportunities.
