2024 was a year with both ups and downs in cargo volumes for Scandinavia’s largest port. On the container side, the Port of Gothenburg reports another very strong year with high volumes and efficiency figures. While other segments showed mixed figures, the grand total for all segments was an 8 per cent increase in tonnes.
In 2024, more containerised cargo was handled than in the record year of 2023 – despite the number of containers decreasing by just under 1 per cent. More loaded containers were handled in 2024 than in 2023, while the handling of empty containers decreased to a greater extent.
Although containerised export cargo did decrease slightly, volumes on the import side grew significantly during the year – by nearly 15 per cent.
With a good balance between imports and exports in a port, the need for empty containers decreases. This is because an import container can quickly be emptied and then loaded as an export container, without the need to ship in an empty container from elsewhere. This results in higher efficiency, less climate impact, and lower costs in the supply chain.
The number of containers transported to and from the port by rail increased by 7 per cent. 2024 became the second year ever in which more than 500,000 containers were transported to or from the port by rail.
Primarily, it is import-heavy rail destinations such as Falköping and Nässjö that contribute to the growth, as well as new shuttles to and from destinations in the north of Sweden. Just over 60 per cent of the containers transported to or from the Port of Gothenburg from the hinterland are carried by rail.
