Imagine, for a moment, Cologne without its bustling ports. The Hafen Köln-Niehl I is more than just a place for ships. It is a vital organ in the city’s economic heart. Here at Hafen Köln-Niehl I, history and industry intertwine.
The story of Hafen Köln-Niehl I begins in the early 20th century. In 1921, the City Council decided to build the Niehler Hafen. Construction started in May 1922. By July 1923, over 3,000 workers were busy building the harbor. Many of these workers were paid through unemployment relief programs. A first section of the Niehler Hafen was completed in 1925.
Tragedy struck during World War II. Air raids completely destroyed the harbor. However, the spirit of Cologne is resilient. By 1948, the quays and some handling facilities were operational again. The pre-war condition was restored by 1957. This included the current harbor entrance with the West Quay and Basin 1.
Expansion continued. From 1959, Niehl I became the largest Cologne port in terms of area. These expansions finished in 1977. An interesting piece of trivia involves airmail. On December 19, 1929, the first catapult airplane landed here. It was a Heinkel HE 12, named D 1717 New York. This plane was stationed on the steamship Bremen. It launched via catapult to bring mail destined for Germany to Niehler Hafen. From here, the mail was sorted. It then went to Cologne-Butzweilerhof Airport for distribution across Germany.
The Royal Navy also used the port after World War II for seaplanes. The Belgian armed forces in Cologne used Niehler Hafen as a fuel depot. They also used it for their Rhine fleet.
Today, RheinCargo operates Hafen Köln-Niehl I. The harbor has four basins covering 472,700 square meters of water. The land area is 837,300 square meters. This makes Niehl I the largest of Cologne’s ports. Eleven RheinCargo cranes and one private crane are in operation. The port also features three liquid cargo facilities and two dry cargo handling halls.
Since 1986, a pedestrian and bicycle bridge has spanned the harbor entrance. It forms part of the Rhine Cycle Route. The bridge connects Am Molenkopf street with the Niehler Damm. In 2011, Hafen Köln-Niehl I handled about 514,000 TEU using five container gantry cranes. The total cargo turnover was around 2.1 million tons. Two of the crane bridges have a water-side extension of 36 meters. This allows handling two ships side by side.
The four harbor basins are numbered according to when they were built. There are five quays at Hafen Köln-Niehl I. They are the West Quay, Lagerhauskai, Stapelkai, and Hansekai. There is also Basin 4a at Molenkopf.
All quays and businesses at Molenkopf connect to the HGK’s freight transport routes. These routes link to the Deutsche Bahn’s rail network. The port has three entrances for road traffic. At Westkai, containers transfer between ships, trains, and trucks. The Terminal Westkai was built around the turn of the millennium. It handles containers, swap bodies, and trailers. The pedestrian bridge divides Westkai into a crane area and a non-crane area.
At Lagerhauskai, there is a large warehouse. A large grain silo is operated by RWZ. Project cargo and oversized transport also happen here. A car drop-off point for inland waterway vessels is also located here. CTS GmbH operates its container terminal at Stapelkai since 1984. The North Sea ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp connect via a bi-weekly inland waterway service. Neska operates a dry cargo handling facility at Basin 3.
Hansekai mainly houses forwarding agencies. RheinCargo operates its own dry cargo handling hall here. Three harbor cranes are used at Hansekai. One is a hydraulic crane used for scrap handling at Basin 3. Basin 4a serves as a berth for Köln-Düsseldorfer passenger ships. KD also maintains its repair shop for passenger ships here. Silospedition Schmidt has a branch at Molenkopf since 1981. RheinEnergie operates the Niehl heating plant on the peninsula.
Note the footbridge. Unfortunately, a ship impact in October 2023 structurally damaged the bridge. It is closed indefinitely. Repairs are scheduled to begin in October 2024. In December 2018, the event ship Pure-Liner 2 sank here. It was raised in January 2019.
From its beginnings after the great flood to its role today, the Hafen Köln-Niehl I stands as a testament to Cologne’s industrious spirit.