Cultural change with SMARTPort strategy

Oldenburg, 26 November 2025 | For almost 30 years, the port industry and the Lower Saxony Ministry of Economic Affairs have been working together to effectively strengthen the visibility of Lower Saxony’s seaports in business, politics, and the public. This is evident, among other things, in the successful work of their joint marketing company, Seaports of Niedersachsen GmbH, whose supervisory board has now been newly constituted. Additional committees have also been elected.

Michael de Reese, CEO of Rhenus Port Logistics, has once again been appointed Chairman of the Supervisory Board. His deputy continues to be Uwe Jacob, Head of Division at the Lower Saxony Ministry of Economic Affairs. The other elected members of the Supervisory Board are Jan Müller, CEO of J. Müller SE; Captain Arne Ehlers, Chairman of the Cuxhaven Port Industry Association (Hafenwirtschaftsgemeinschaft Cuxhaven e.V.); Jan Remmers, Managing Director of Anker Schifffahrts-Gesellschaft mbH; Kersten Mittwollen, Head of Department at the Economic Development Agency of the City of Oldenburg; and Andreas Bullwinkel, President of the Wilhelmshaven Port Industry Association (Wilhelmshavener Hafenwirtschafts-Vereinigung e.V.).

“The Supervisory Board of Seaports of Niedersachsen GmbH brings together substantial expertise and diverse perspectives from operational work, which we will jointly use, together with our Managing Director, to systematically advance our port marketing company and its activities. I am very much looking forward to continuing our future collaboration in this committee,” said Michael de Reese.

For more than 20 years, Seaports of Niedersachsen GmbH, headquartered in Oldenburg and funded as a public-private partnership by the State of Lower Saxony and the private port industry, has been consolidating the professional marketing of all Lower Saxony seaports. Seaports, as an established umbrella brand, represents the full range of services offered by the “Universal Port of Lower Saxony,” which includes handling and logistics services for all types of goods as well as product-related value-added services. The port marketing company provides information on current developments at the seaport locations and creates platforms worldwide to connect the port industry with its customers, enabling successful positioning in international competition.

The Working Group of Lower Saxony Seaports, which serves as the political voice of the port industry, has also held new elections. Here too, Michael de Reese was confirmed as spokesperson, and Jan Müller was once again appointed deputy spokesperson.

Image: Rhenus

Uniper has begun construction of the “Voslapper Groden” photovoltaic project in Wilhelmshaven. After receiving the building permit from the responsible building authority on October 30, 2025, construction work on the ash landfill of the former coal-fired power plant was able to start. The substructure will first be anchored in the landfill body, followed by module installation starting in mid-November.

The project involves installing around 28,500 solar modules on an area of roughly 14 hectares. With a capacity of around 17 MWp, the plant will generate up to 17,500 MWh of renewable electricity per year—enough to supply approximately 4,500 households. Commissioning is planned for July 2026.

“The solar project in Wilhelmshaven shows how we can make meaningful use of existing infrastructure for the energy transition and strengthen Wilhelmshaven as a location for renewable energy. With the granted building permit, we were able to begin construction and start the next project phase,” explains Hussein Fahmy, Project Manager for Renewable Energy at Uniper.

Image: Uniper

BREMEN. The BHV – Bremische Hafen- und Logistikvertretung – has said that it will again be including the “Project Logistics Award” as part of LogisticsConnect.

Oldenburg, 26 November 2025 | For almost 30 years, the port industry and the Lower Saxony Ministry of Economic Affairs have been working together to effectively strengthen the visibility of Lower Saxony’s seaports in business, politics, and the public. This is evident, among other things, in the successful work of their joint marketing company, Seaports of Niedersachsen GmbH, whose supervisory board has now been newly constituted. Additional committees have also been elected.

Michael de Reese, CEO of Rhenus Port Logistics, has once again been appointed Chairman of the Supervisory Board. His deputy continues to be Uwe Jacob, Head of Division at the Lower Saxony Ministry of Economic Affairs. The other elected members of the Supervisory Board are Jan Müller, CEO of J. Müller SE; Captain Arne Ehlers, Chairman of the Cuxhaven Port Industry Association (Hafenwirtschaftsgemeinschaft Cuxhaven e.V.); Jan Remmers, Managing Director of Anker Schifffahrts-Gesellschaft mbH; Kersten Mittwollen, Head of Department at the Economic Development Agency of the City of Oldenburg; and Andreas Bullwinkel, President of the Wilhelmshaven Port Industry Association (Wilhelmshavener Hafenwirtschafts-Vereinigung e.V.).

“The Supervisory Board of Seaports of Niedersachsen GmbH brings together substantial expertise and diverse perspectives from operational work, which we will jointly use, together with our Managing Director, to systematically advance our port marketing company and its activities. I am very much looking forward to continuing our future collaboration in this committee,” said Michael de Reese.

For more than 20 years, Seaports of Niedersachsen GmbH, headquartered in Oldenburg and funded as a public-private partnership by the State of Lower Saxony and the private port industry, has been consolidating the professional marketing of all Lower Saxony seaports. Seaports, as an established umbrella brand, represents the full range of services offered by the “Universal Port of Lower Saxony,” which includes handling and logistics services for all types of goods as well as product-related value-added services. The port marketing company provides information on current developments at the seaport locations and creates platforms worldwide to connect the port industry with its customers, enabling successful positioning in international competition.

The Working Group of Lower Saxony Seaports, which serves as the political voice of the port industry, has also held new elections. Here too, Michael de Reese was confirmed as spokesperson, and Jan Müller was once again appointed deputy spokesperson.

Image: Rhenus

Uniper has begun construction of the “Voslapper Groden” photovoltaic project in Wilhelmshaven. After receiving the building permit from the responsible building authority on October 30, 2025, construction work on the ash landfill of the former coal-fired power plant was able to start. The substructure will first be anchored in the landfill body, followed by module installation starting in mid-November.

The project involves installing around 28,500 solar modules on an area of roughly 14 hectares. With a capacity of around 17 MWp, the plant will generate up to 17,500 MWh of renewable electricity per year—enough to supply approximately 4,500 households. Commissioning is planned for July 2026.

“The solar project in Wilhelmshaven shows how we can make meaningful use of existing infrastructure for the energy transition and strengthen Wilhelmshaven as a location for renewable energy. With the granted building permit, we were able to begin construction and start the next project phase,” explains Hussein Fahmy, Project Manager for Renewable Energy at Uniper.

Image: Uniper

BREMEN. The BHV – Bremische Hafen- und Logistikvertretung – has said that it will again be including the “Project Logistics Award” as part of LogisticsConnect.

BREMEN. The Weser Day 2025, which took place in late September, focussed on the joint investment agenda under the guiding theme of “Investments in Bremen and Lower Saxony’s seaports – cooperation between the public and private sectors”.