Stronger Together: How customer collaboration drove a successful 2025

2025 has been characterized by unpredictability in the world markets and major shifts in relation to shipping companies' routes. Therefore, flexibility has been a key word for us in both Aarhus and Kalundborg. 
Across both terminals, the focus has been clear: Support our customers’ growth by delivering stability, efficiency, and operational excellence even – or rather especially - when activity peaked.
“Delivering on our promises and securing our customers’ success is the core of everything we do,” says Managing Director Mikael Gutman.
“In a year with exceptional volumes, our team never lost sight of that. Every initiative, every improvement, every extra hour has been about lifting our customers’ needs to the benefit of the societies we serve.”

Aarhus: Record volumes without compromising performance

Throughout the year, Aarhus saw unprecedented activity with several weekly handling records, including a peak of 13,833 moves in week 37. Notably, the terminal surpassed its all-time annual move record from 2022 already by this November – a milestone reflecting both customer demand and operational readiness.
Despite this pressure, key performance indicators stayed strong.
Truck turnaround times remained stable at around 24 minutes on average, ensuring fast flows through the gate for trucking companies, ultimately contributing to a more efficient Danish supply chain. 
On rail, the terminal shifted almost 12,000 containers from road to rail – benefitting both customers and the environment with +75% of trains arriving on time.
“We are constantly working to adapt our operations to the needs of our customers and to increase efficiency. Therefore, we are also pleased to note that even though we are setting volume records, we are experiencing a much better flow in and out of the terminal compared to the last record year in 2022” says Mikael Gutman

Expanding customer opportunities with new services

2025 also brought growth in the form of new and returning weekly calls:

• MSC Swan mainliner service started calling Aarhus in April
• CMA-CGM Scandinavia West Coast Express (SWX) was added to our weekly line-up from July onwards
• Maersk Asia Europe (AE5) mainliner service permanently added Aarhus in September to complement the existing Gemini network

These additions enabled customers to access broader global reach, faster connections and more stable cargo flows.

Kalundborg: Performance driven by precision and partnership

Kalundborg continued to distinguish itself in 2025 with strong crane productivity — an achievement that directly benefits customers through faster vessel operations.
With a Crane Moves Per Hour (CMPH) score of 17.35 year-to-date, up 16.4% from last year, Kalundborg is now the no. 1 top-performing mobile habour crane terminal in APM Terminals globally.
High CMPH means vessels are handled faster, allowing shipping lines to stay on schedule and customers to enjoy shorter port stays, better reliability and fewer delays.
The focus on speed did not compromise landside performance either: Truck turnaround time consistently stayed below 10 minutes – a clear sign of smooth gate flow and efficient yard coordination.
“Our partners know they can rely on Kalundborg. The team has built a culture where precision, safety, and customer support go hand in hand,” explains Mikael Gutman.
“Moreover, with the extension of our partnership until 2043, we reaffirm our long-term commitment to develop Kalundborg as a modern, efficient and sustainable container port — ensuring continued growth, high efficiency and strengthened container capacity for customers, partners, the local community, and Zealand.”

Powered by people, strengthened by lean

Across Aarhus and Kalundborg, APM Terminals have continued to invest in training of our people, continuous process improvements and additional staff to meet customer needs.
“I’m incredibly proud of our people. They are truly committed to lifting our customers,” Mikael Gutman notes and continues: “Their ability to push that extra mile while still delivering world-class service is the reason we can lift our customers’ business year after year.”