The EBRD is providing approximately €31 million to DCT Gdańsk S.A to co-finance the construction of a second deep-water berth at DCT Gdańsk container terminal in northern Poland and also to refinance existing debts. The expansion of the country’s most important sea hub will serve growing demand for container port handling services and boost the local and regional economy.
The EBRD loan will be co-financed by commercial banks which will jointly provide the balance of up to €259 million for the investment. The total loan amount is €290 million.
The construction of a second deepwater container terminal will create much-needed additional capacity at DCT. DCT, the largest private sector terminal operator in Poland, is already working close to capacity. The new terminal will raise the total handling capacity of 3 million TEU.
This will allow the operating company DCT to meet increasing demand for container port handling services in the Baltic Sea area. DCT Gdańsk is both a gateway for Poland as well a major transhipment hub for the majority of the South and East Baltic region. It is also the most-easterly Baltic container terminal with a deep draft facility capable of receiving Ultra Large Container Vessels with over 18,000 TEU container capacity, used for the inter-continental trade from Asia to Europe.
Sue Barrett, EBRD Director, Transport, said: “We are very proud to sign this project with DCT today because a thriving port in Gdańsk is the key to a prosperous city and a prosperous hinterland. The growing demand for its services illustrates the strength of Poland’s and the Baltics’ economy and the expansion of the facilities will further boost the development of the region.”
“We are approaching the completion of the project’s initial phase which directly precedes the construction works. The decision to develop the existing DCT Gdansk container terminal is a result of the growing need for more efficient and economic transport solutions in the Baltic region, able to compete effectively with the services of European container ports. We are proud to be the market leader in bringing about innovation in the CEE region’s trade patterns,” said DCT Gdansk CEO Maciek Kwiatkowski.
Since the beginning of its operations in Poland in 1991, the EBRD has invested €7 billion in more than 330 projects in the country. In addition to its wide product range for banks and companies, in recent years the Bank has also built a growing portfolio of investments (both equity and debt) in the Polish financial sector, for which demand remains high.
