Germany to build second North Sea naval base in Emden
Germany is building a second navy base on the North Sea in the city of Emden, with berths for frigates, minesweepers and tugs and room for up to 2,000 personnel. The base is expected to be completed in the early 2030s.
Germany's government has decided to build a new naval port for the Bundeswehr in the city of Emden on the North Sea coast in the state of Lower Saxony. On Monday, October 5, Defense Minister Boris Pistorius and Lower Saxony's Minister President Olaf Lies signed a declaration of intent to build the base there.
Pistorius said Emden would once again become a German navy base and that several billion euros would be invested in the construction. The new port is expected to be ready in the early 2030s.
Largest expansion in decades
According to the defense minister, Germany's navy is currently the smallest in the Bundeswehr's history, even though it must carry out the largest and most numerous tasks. For that reason, he said, the navy needs to grow.
Emden was chosen for the new base in part because of its strategic location and large available open areas. Alongside new and longer berths, the number of navy personnel stationed there is also set to increase. In the long term, Emden could host up to 2,000 permanent military positions, the minister said.
Germany currently has only one naval base on the North Sea coast, the Heppenser Groden port in Wilhelmshaven. A second North Sea base would make the fleet more flexible and mobile, Pistorius stressed, adding that in a serious crisis this would make Germany's actions harder to predict and increase its operational capabilities.
Plans call for seven berths for frigates, ten for minesweepers and another ten for tugboats to be built in Emden, with the port set to become a key part of Germany's new naval strategy. Experts note that Emden's geographic advantage lies partly in the fact that the East Frisian city lies outside the range of Russian medium-range missiles.
