Background

Contact

Szczecin and Swinoujscie
Seaports Authority
Bytomska 7
70-603 Szczecin
tel. (+48 91) 430-82-20
fax. (+48 91) 462-34-12
info@port.szczecin.pl

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Background

The history of the port in Szczecin dates back to the second half of the 8th century. Utilising its favourable location at the estuary of the Odra river and well-targeted investments, the port was one of the largest ports on the Baltic Sea already in the Middle Ages.

Szczecin’s membership in the League of Hanseatic Cities since the 13th c. had considerable impact on its development, since member cities maintained commercial relations with all major trade centres.
At that time, the first commercial links were growing between Szczecin and Brandenburg until the 17th c. when the Swedes took over the city.
In the 18th c. the authorities of Szczecin, supported financially by the Prussian Government, began dredging the centre of the mouth of the Odra river and building the port of Swinoujscie that started servicing the first ships in the middle of the same century.

A real economic growth, however, commenced in the 19th c.The port expanded. At that time a transport node started to be developed, linking inland waterways and railway lines with sea lines. The development effected with the opening of a railway link between Szczecin and Berlin in 1843.

In the 19th c. yet another important event for the port was the opening of the Piastowski canal shortening the waterway distance between Szczecin and Swinoujscie (1880).

Impulse for a rapid development of the port was caused by the growth in the railway transport capacity. This development facilitated considerable growth in handling volumes, while, on the other hand, forced the extension of the port and growth of its handling capacity.

After opening of the Kiel Canal and establishing free ports of Hamburg and Copenhagen as well as a free port zone in Bremen, the port of Szczecin followed that trend in development and in 1898 a duty free port was opened.

During World War I the port of Szczecin became the most important German port.

The period between the wars witnessed a stagnation in the port activity.

During World War II, the port and Szczecin’s economy thrived once again. Since, the arms industry developed in the city, it became the major target for air raids launched by the allied forces. In the result of those air raids approximately 90% damage was inflicted, including practically all port elements, such as transhipment facilities, warehouses, quays, barges and tug boats.The damage was so serious that the first vessels calling at Szczecin after the war had to be unloaded and loaded manually. This method was also applied to bulk cargo, coal inclusively.

A regular port operation was hampered by the Russian Army occupying a major section of the port. Only as late as in 1954 selected quays in the port were transferred to the Polish administration.

Today, it is a rapidly developing port complex, with annual handling volumes reaching 20 million tons.

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