The Hamburg Port Area Exchange Group reports progress23/1/2023|Press releasesOn Friday 20 January 2023, another meeting of the Czech-German Working Group for the exchange of the Czech Republic's port areas took place in Hamburg. The Czech delegation, led by Deputy Transport Minister Václav Bernard, held talks with the representatives of the Hamburg Port Authority. During the negotiations there was a shift in the topic involving the length of the tracks in the harbour and an agreement on the total area that shall be exchanged. There was a discussion on the road connection of the new Czech territory in the Kuhwerder Hafen area, so that future transhipment activities could be optimised. Negotiations continued to ensure the final useful length of the tracks within the railway connection of the site to allow the entry of a complete train (2x 350 m). Progress was also made in negotiations on the overall final size of the new Czech territory in Hamburg and the possibility of using the adjacent harbour edge by sea vessels. Intensive negotiations on the high-quality connection of the Czech Republic to maritime transport will continue. An online working team will be meeting in the coming period to address technical and technological issues. The next meeting of the Czech-German Working Group for the exchange of these port areas belonging to the Czech Republic will take place in Prague. "We want to get everything done in time to start the implementation phase of the project in the second half of 2024," said Deputy Minister Václav Bernard.