An agreement was signed on cooperation between the Maritime Office in Gdynia and the Port of Gdynia Authority S.A. as part of the design and construction of new breakwaters as access infrastructure to the Port of Gdynia.

The signing was attended by representatives of the Maritime Office: Cpt. z.w. Wiesław Piotrzkowski - director, Barbara Olczyk - deputy director for investment and Andrzej Kajut - chief accountant and the Port's Management Board: Adam Meller - president, Jacek Sadaj - vice president and Maciej Bąk - vice president.

Thanks to the parliament decision at 17 September 2020, seaports were recapitalised with bonds in the amount of EURO 250 million, in order to increase the share capital of ports for the construction of strategic elements of access infrastructure, including external breakwaters. Port of Gdynia Authority S.A. received securities in the amount of EURO 150 million. The funds are intended for the construction of external breakwaters, which are an essential element for the improvement of navigation conditions in the Port of Gdynia. Their creation gives the prospect of further dynamic development of the port, including the construction of the Outer Port.

The Maritime Office in Gdynia will act as the investor, and the Port of Gdynia Authority S.A. will be a substitute investor. The investor will cooperate with the Port at the stage of preparation and implementation of the investment, including in particular the preparation of tender documentation, conduct of procedures, preparation of technical documentation for the investment and construction. The port will be responsible for designing and selecting the contractor for the investment. The final date of the investment is scheduled for December 31, 2027.

- The Port of Gdynia, which in 1923 became Poland's window to the world, is entering a new stage of development. It is another step towards modernity and increasing the attractiveness and competitiveness on the port services market. We are continuing, one might say, the pre-war tradition when the Commercial Navy Office, of which we are heirs, performed investor functions during the construction of the Port. We are currently in the process of making the Port more attractive in terms of navigation, namely deepening and widening the approach fairway and rebuilding two heads of the main breakwater - said Captain Wiesław Piotrzkowski, Director of the Maritime Office in Gdynia.

Cooperation between the entities will allow the use of experience and knowledge in the implementation of similar investments. Active participation of PGA S.A. already at the design stage, it will provide space for the development of the Port of Gdynia in the long-term perspective. Moreover, an important effect of the Port of Gdynia's involvement in the work on the project is coordination with other strategic projects implemented in the Gdynia port.

- We want to continue the vision of Ing. Tadeusz Wendy and Eugeniusz Kwiatkowski, so that the Port of Gdynia could be a generator of the country's economic development for the next decades. We adjust the quality of infrastructure to the growing expectations of the market. Investments improve the competitive position of the port in the Baltic Sea basin. Moreover, the new breakwaters will act as a cover for the entire port, which is a dual-purpose port and, moreover, a port of strategic importance for the functioning of the Polish economy. Thanks to the implemented investments, we are strengthening the role of Poland in the trans-European transport network. - says Adam Meller, President of the Board of the Port of Gdansk Authority S.A.

The construction of new breakwaters is a complementary investment to the ones currently implemented by the Management Board of the Company in the inner port. Cooperation between the port authorities and the Maritime Office is necessary for the implementation of the development strategy of the Port of Gdynia, the key component of which is the construction of the Outer Port.

The largest investment project currently underway - the deepening of the approach fairway and internal waters of the Port of Gdynia is also a joint investment, both carried out by PGA S.A. and the Maritime Office in Gdynia. It is divided in such a way that from the main breakwater towards the bay at a length of 3714 meters, the approach track will be deepened from the current depth of about 14 m to 17 meters and from the current width of 150 meters to 280 meters, as well as reconstructing 2 heads of the main breakwater to enable the construction of 17 meters deep at the main entrance to the port - these are tasks performed by the Maritime Office in Gdynia. It is an element of a larger, more advanced project - that is, the entire hydrotechnical infrastructure from the main entrance to the container basin (Puckie Quay), where works have been carried out for 3 years. Currently, the internal reservoir is 13.5 meters long, and as part of our joint task it will be deepened to 16 meters.

It was necessary to rebuild some of the quays, so far we have already completed the Italian and Slovak Quays, and we will start the reconstruction of the Norwegian Quay.

A new turntable number 2 has already been built, which will ultimately enable the turning of ships with a length of 400 m.

Despite the global economic slowdown resulting from the pandemic, the pace of investments in the Port of Gdynia is not slowing down. In 2020, a record reloading result was achieved - over 24.6 million tonnes. Despite the enormous challenges, the Port of Gdynia, as the only Polish port, ended it with an increase - 2.9% compared to 2019. An increase in container transshipments - 0.9% y / y is also important.

The Port of Gdynia is the base node of the TEN-T network, an element of the Baltic-Adriatic transport corridor, which is one of the key European Union communication routes connecting the North with the South. Effective use of own financial resources from the Company's revenues, as well as those obtained from EU funds, makes the Port of Gdynia a dynamic development. The Port of Gdynia maintains the dynamics of investments, becoming even more competitive, while improving the safety of shipping. The port's modern infrastructure and terminals are used by the world's largest shipping operators, including MSC, Hapag-Lloyd, Unifeeder, Containerships, MacAndrews, Transfennica, Finnlines-Grimaldi, Stena Line. The constant increase in transshipments and good forecasts for the coming years constitute a strong argument for the development of the Gdynia port. The Outer Port is a strategic investment in the implementation phase. As a priority task of the Port of Gdynia Authority S.A. has been approved by the Government of the Republic of Poland and has been included in the government's draft Program for the development of Polish seaports until 2020 (with a perspective until 2030). The Deepwater Outer Port will be built on the basis of the existing Silesian Quay - on artificial land, extending beyond the current protective breakwater. Its construction has become a necessity in the face of growing market competition and forecasts regarding the demand for container reloading in Polish ports, i.e. an increase in reloading to the level of about 9.5 million TEU in 2050. The Outer Port, as a pier being a landlocked sea area, will increase the port's surface by 151 ha and its transshipment capacity by 2.5 million TEU.