September the 13th, 2026 – In its first year of commercial operation, Rijeka Gateway has successfully established cooperation with the two largest shipping companies in the world, Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd.
Sinisa Malus reports for Poslovni that the terminal has received more than a thousand trains and over 80 thousand trucks since opening, and the current ratio of cargo transport from the terminal is 42 percent by rail and 58 percent by road. Rijeka Gateway is the technologically most advanced container terminal in this part of Europe, in the first year since the start of commercial operations has created a team of 422 employees, raised the terminal to a high level of operational excellence required by the global APM Terminals network, received over 100 ships and handled more than 370 thousand TEU of cargo.
Additionally, the terminal has strengthened Rijeka’s logistical position between large Asian ports and the Mediterranean within the Gemini shipping network, and new logistical routes have been opened so that Rijeka is connected by regular rail links with Serbia, Hungary and Austria, as well as with important ports on the Adriatic and in Italy, it was highlighted at a press conference organised on the occasion of the first anniversary of commercial operations of Rijeka Gateway.
In the first year of commercial operations, Rijeka Gateway successfully established cooperation with the two largest shipping companies in the world, Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd, both of which use this terminal as their transhipment hub for import and export cargo from Italy. Rijeka Gateway has additionally confirmed its role as a regional logistical hub for container traffic within the Adriatic and is currently the only terminal on the Adriatic that performs this type of operations within the Gemini network. Information indicates that the lowland railway project has finally received the long-desired “acceleration”, which is necessary due to the new phase of development of the Rijeka terminal.
the gemini network
Rijeka Gateway has also confirmed its role as a regional logistical hub for container traffic within the Adriatic and is currently the only terminal on the Adriatic that performs this type of operations within the Gemini network – an operational cooperation between the companies Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd, which covers seven main global trade routes and serves to accelerate and optimise traffic, and Rijeka Gateway is a key port of call within the Gemini cooperation on the line connecting large Asian ports with the Mediterranean. Thus Rijeka is additionally connected with Trieste, Venice, Ravenna and Ancona.
Three ships currently arrive at Rijeka Gateway weekly: one mother vessel on the Asia–Europe service and two smaller feeder vessels. The introduction of an additional feeder service for Ploče and Durrës is expected soon. The terminal has also started parallel operations, which means that two smaller feeder vessels, around 150 metres in length, can be berthed in parallel at the terminal, and operations on them take place in parallel, which enables better utilisation of the operational quay, shorter waiting times for ships and greater efficiency of terminal operations.
“Rijeka has always had a vision and the port has always been the one that carried new development moments. We are striving for the connection of the Port of Rijeka with a double-track railway to go as quickly as possible, and for the container terminals to get an exit with the most efficient part of extracting traffic from the port. This port is not only a local and national interest, it has always been a European hub, and Rijeka Gateway contributes precisely to such positioning of Rijeka,” said Nina Perko, Director of the Maritime Administration in the Ministry of the Sea, Transport and Infrastructure.
Denis Vukorepa, Director of the Port Authority of Rijeka, recalled that thanks to Rijeka Gateway the total container traffic in the Port of Rijeka in the first six months of this year increased by 66 percent, and total traffic by around 40 percent.
“A year ago here we spoke about what Rijeka Gateway would mean for Rijeka, Croatia and this transport route. Today we see concrete results. In less than a year the terminal has received its hundredth ship, opened more than 420 new jobs and confirmed that Rijeka is once again strongly written on the map of European and world logistical flows. Rijeka Gateway represents the foundation for the further development of the port and an important step forward for the economy of Rijeka and Croatia,” said Denis Vukorepa, Director of the Port Authority of Rijeka.
“Rijeka has always been connected with the port, the port is part of our identity and part of our future. That is why it is important to us that our port is competitive, well connected with European and world markets. We are especially pleased that the development of the terminal brings new jobs, new knowledge, and especially opportunities for young people and the fact that young people can build their knowledge and experience right in our city. We want a Rijeka that develops, attracts such investments, creates new opportunities, new jobs, but a city in which development takes place with respect for space and the quality of life of our citizens,” emphasised Vedran Vivoda, Deputy Mayor of the City of Rijeka.
The terminal has received more than a thousand trains and over 80 thousand trucks since opening, and the current ratio of cargo transport from the terminal is 42 percent by rail and 58 percent by road.
corridors, ecology and employees
During the first year of terminal operations, more than 92 thousand hours of education and professional training were invested in employee development. This was preceded by an intensive period of learning and preparation, during which in 2025, ahead of the terminal’s launch, 130 thousand hours of education were recorded.
“When we draw a line under the first year of operations, I must say that I am most proud of three things. The first is our team of 422 employees, and that a young team considering that the average age of employees is 35 years, but also a team in which 20 percent are women, employed in almost all functions and levels of management. In Rijeka, and even in the wider region, such a technologically advanced terminal did not exist, our jobs and processes are special and very complex, so building a team that can compete at that level with the best terminals is a source of pride not only for all of us at Rijeka Gateway, but also for Rijeka and the whole of Croatia.
The second are the new logistical corridors with which we have connected Rijeka with the region, which is a great value that our terminal has brought. The third is that we have continued to carefully monitor our impact on the environment and the community with the goal of being a good neighbour to the citizens of Rijeka. We have successfully certified the environmental management system according to the ISO 14001:2015 standard, confirming our commitment to environmental protection, and we continuously communicate with the local community on all topics related to the quality of life of citizens,” said Peter Corfitsen, President of the Management Board of Rijeka Gateway.
The terminal has received more than a thousand trains and over 80 thousand trucks since opening, and the current ratio of cargo transport from the terminal is 42 percent by rail and 58 percent by road. The entry and exit process for truck transport is fully digitised, which speeds up the truck processing process and reduces waiting times, which reduces the burden on traffic and pollution. The average truck time is around 15 minutes, and the shortest achieved truck processing time is ten minutes, and that on a day when more than 500 trucks were processed.
It is clear that the main limitation remains the railway. In this year little has changed. Nevertheless, information indicates that the project has finally received the long-desired “acceleration”, primarily bureaucratic. The project practically languished unprepared for years, only to receive the necessary acceleration in the past year. Processes have been moved from a standstill, so it is still to be expected that by the middle of the next decade we will finally see the realisation of that project.
investments for rijeka and the community
“By handling 370 thousand TEU of cargo we have significantly raised the total capacity of the Port of Rijeka and we are rapidly approaching the numbers we planned – and that is to reach a handling of 650 thousand TEU, and then in the second phase one million TEU. During the first year of operations Rijeka Gateway maintained a high level of operational reliability, with 98 percent availability of port equipment and 99 percent availability of key systems on the operational quay and storage areas, which is at the level of the best terminals.
For the full potential of the terminal, the planned increase in the capacity of rail traffic will be key and here we welcome the activities of the Government of the Republic of Croatia. We will continue to invest in the local community, especially through cooperation with the Faculty of Maritime Studies and the University of Rijeka, through various scholarship and education programmes, but also through donation programmes aimed at Rijeka kindergartens and primary schools,” concluded Tomislav Rosandić, Member of the Management Board of Rijeka Gateway.
