The Importance of the Sea Route for…
When goods pass over the quay in Aabenraa, it is not only a local port activity. Behind every ton that is unloaded or loaded, there are companies and farms that depend on raw materials, materials and efficient supply lines.
On this page, we have gathered three examples of the Port of Aabenraa's significance for business, growth and jobs here in Southern Jutland.
A supply chain for Southern Jutland agriculture
Agriculture is one of Southern Jutland's most important industries. For example, Tønder is Denmark's largest agricultural municipality, while Denmark's largest organic milk producer is located in Gram. Aabenraa and Sønderborg are heavily involved in pig production, but all branches of agriculture are represented in Southern Jutland.
Approximately 10% of private sector employees in Southern Jutland are employed in the Southern Jutland food cluster, which creates growth, cohesion and secure supply lines not only locally but throughout the country.
In short, agriculture is important for all of us – and so is the infrastructure that agriculture is entirely dependent on. At the Port of Aabenraa, 275,000 tons of agricultural-related goods pass over the quay.
Among the companies at the port is Faxe Kalk, which supplies half of all Southern Jutland and North German farmers with lime for their fields. There are also thousands of tons of raw materials and finished feed from companies such as Brdr. Ewers and DLG. And there are all the residual products from the agricultural and food sector that Nature Energy can convert into green biogas.
If we had no commercial port, it would be problematic for the Southern Jutland farms, as road transport is the only alternative. This is both far more expensive for farmers and less environmentally friendly than sea transport. So there is good reason to take good care of our agriculture, agricultural businesses and the Southern Jutland commercial port.
Did you know that...
275,000 tons of agricultural-related goods passed over the quay in 2024
36% of Denmark's dairy cows are found in Southern Jutland
In 2024, there were 7,178 employees in the Southern Jutland agricultural and food cluster
Strengthens cohesion in the construction industry
Construction projects require raw materials. When North Als is supplied with kilometers of district heating pipes, the trenches must be closed with new asphalt. When wind farms are established south of the border, stable gravel is required for the solid foundations. And when roads in Tønder, Haderslev, Rinkenæs, Ribe, Middelfart and Aabenraa get new wearing courses, the raw materials are a prerequisite. Raw materials that find their way to the region via the Port of Aabenraa. At the Port of Aabenraa, the majority of the almost 1.8 million tons of goods that pass through the quay annually go to the construction sector.
Granite chippings, stable gravel, sand and cement are delivered in huge quantities by companies such as Mibau Stema, E. Krag and Aalborg Portland. These are materials that become asphalt, foundations and security of supply – and thus the infrastructure and jobs that we are all dependent on.
There is also another benefit to the fact that we in Southern Jutland are connected directly to the blue highway. Without the sea route, the raw materials would have to be transported many hundreds of kilometers further on the motorways. This would result in more congestion, greater wear on the road network and a higher climate footprint.
The Port of Aabenraa is not just a place where goods are moved, but a hub that secures the raw materials and supply lines that support Southern Jutland's development – from district heating and roads to energy and climate protection.
Did you know that...
76% of all goods and raw materials come to Denmark via the sea route.
1,300,000 tons of goods were sent by the construction sector over the quay in 2024 in Aabenraa
The Port of Aabenraa is Denmark's 3rd largest bulk port
Key role in the green transition
In Southern Jutland, the green transition is not a distant vision – it is already underway. Solar parks and wind turbines are the visible evidence. But there is also a transition that binds the region together with the world. It takes place on the quayside in Aabenraa.
Here, sea transport is the key. Where a truck can move a ton of goods approx. 7 km per kg of CO₂, a ship can move the same ton 140 km. Therefore, the EU will move half of all goods over 300 km to sea and rail by 2050. Therefore, we also see a future in which the Port of Aabenraa, together with other Danish ports, plays a greater role in the green transition.
The Port of Aabenraa is today among the country's largest ports for bulk – with raw materials and materials that are the foundation for agriculture, industry and construction throughout Southern Jutland. That role is indispensable. But at the same time, the port has embarked on a new agenda: to connect the region's green energy production with international shipping.
This became clear in May 2025, when the world's first methanol-powered container ship, Laura Mærsk, bunkered e-methanol from European Energy's plant in Kassø – just 12 km from the quay in Aabenraa. It was the first time in the world that a container ship was powered by fuel produced on an industrial scale. A fuel that can potentially reduce CO2 emissions by 90% compared to fossil fuels.
With its location, the Port of Aabenraa connects Southern Jutland's energy production with the Baltic Sea, the Kiel Canal, the Ruhr district and on to the major European ports. Thus, the port is not only the lifeline of the past for raw materials – but also the hub of the future for green logistics.
Did you know that...
This is how far 1 ton of goods can be moved per kilo of CO2 emissions (with conventional fuel)
7 km by truck
143 km by ship