Organisations will share data to optimise how AIDA and Costa ships pass through Hamburg
By
Rebecca Gibson |
Carnival Maritime has joined with the Hamburg Vessel Coordination Center (HVCC) to plan how ships in the AIDA Cruises and Costa Cruises fleets move through the Port of Hamburg and the narrow River Elbe in Germany.
Starting at the end of February, Carnival Maritime will share the expected arrival and departure times of the cruise ships with HVCC’s Nautical Terminal Coordination (NTK) department, which monitors all mega-ship, feeder and inland vessel traffic in Hamburg in real time.
This will enable the NTK to direct the cruise ship captains to change course or speed in the event of an obstruction. If, for example, a Costa ship and another large vessel are likely to end up in the harbour at the same time, NTK can contact Carnival Maritime and suggest the captain slightly reduces the cruise ship’s speed.
“This saves on fuel, because it reduces waiting times,” said Jörgen Strandberg, director of the fleet operations centre at Carnival Maritime. “Being even more punctual is a great advantage to us, because the cruise ship will generally have to make up for lost time afterwards. To do so, it will increase its speed and thus its fuel consumption and emissions.”
In addition, cruise operators will be able to inform their guests about any travel schedule adjustments in advance.
“We are very pleased that Carnival Maritime is collaborating with us,” said Heinrich Goller, CEO of HVCC. “The more partners we win for our services, the better we can coordinate the large vessels. It is our goal to recognise potential conflict situations at the river Elbe at an early stage and to make early suggestions to our partners how to avoid the situation.”