HPC Hamburg Port Consulting (HPC) is to carry out a market analysis to guide a passenger shipping regeneration program at the Port of Scarborough on the Caribbean Island of Tobago. HPC will determine the drivers which should be initiated by the Government to stimulate the cruise business over the next twenty years.
Attracting additional cruise passenger visits from a pre-pandemic annual level of 70,000 will play a fundamental role in the economic development of the capital city Scarborough, and in that of the island as a whole through being a primary driver of increased tourism. The task of designing the necessary infrastructure at the port in the heart of the city has been given to a consortia lead by architects JMetrix Ltd., and HPC will deliver the component labelled, Cruise Market Analysis. Furthermore, HPC collaborates with architect RHWZ for cruise terminal design including shore integration and with Inros Lackner for port engineering aspects.
HPC has considerable experience of advising on cruise facility developments having worked on nearly twenty cruise projects since the early 2000’s in Germany, Tunisia, Croatia and the USA, and a total of over forty port development projects in the Caribbean as a whole. Subsequent to its delivery of the Cruise Market Analysis for Scarborough, the consultancy will also contribute operations, sustainability strategy and financial analysis for further phases of the Tobago cruise terminal development scheme.
Hartmut Beyer is HPC’s cruise market specialist and project manager. He outlines the goals of his investigation, “The over-arching aim of the project is to make Scarborough an attractive cruise destination, and with neighbouring Caribbean islands achieving passenger throughputs of significant higher numbers per year, we believe there is massive potential. Our task is to pinpoint those initiatives Tobago is best advised to make in order to achieve such potential.”
The natural assets of the location are profuse. The island itself might be described as a ‘hidden jewel’ with unspoilt sandy beaches, which are home to turtles the year round. Inland there is a virgin rainforest and the cultural heritage of Tobago is rich and varied. The cruise terminal is an element of an urban development plan commissioned by the THA Tobago House of Assembly, which sees sustainable growth of the tourist industry on the island as key to making the most of these natural resources.
Joshua Stewart, Lead Design Consultant at Jmetrix commented, “HPC is a vital element of our consortia as its reputation as a port development consultant is well-established and we see Scarborough port as a primary entry point to the rest of the island. A successful cruise terminal will connect tourists to not just the city but will help open up the delights of Tobago as a whole. Our goal is the creation of an attractive ‘nature-city and the power of the marine environment is central to that aim.”
The results of the first phase of the feasibility study are due to be delivered in March 2023.
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