Newsletter December 2025

Welcome

v. Port Director Mogens Pedersen

Thank you for the positive feedback we have received on the first newsletters. It is important for Hvide Sande Harbor that we are in such good harmony with the city and users, so I hope that the newsletter can contribute to an understanding of our priorities.

We are soon entering the new year. The turn of the year marks a new election period for the board of Hvide Sande Harbor. The following will sit on the board for the next 4 years: Steen Davidsen, Richard Hvas, Hans Schneider, Lisbeth Valther, and Thomas Rahbek Sloth from the Sydvestjysk Fishery Association. Additionally, Carsten Bjerg and Lennart Qvist have been appointed by the city council. The board will constitute itself on January 30, 2026.

The turn of the year also marks that Hvide Sande Harbor has an anniversary as a municipal self-governing harbor – 25 years. The harbor has had only two chairpersons in all these years. In this newsletter, one can read about the difficult negotiations that took place back around the turn of the millennium regarding how the Harbor transitioned from being a state harbor to a municipal self-governing harbor.

Before the turn of the year, it will be Christmas – from all of us at Hvide Sande Harbor, we wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Hvide Sande Harbor 25 years

By: Iver Enevoldsen

I have been asked to provide some reflections in relation to the above.

At the end of 1998, a report was published about the future structure of state harbors, and the Harbor Law Committee submitted a recommendation on the subject.

Based on the report/recommendation, we in the municipal council began discussing the future organization of Hvide Sande Harbor.

We were, of course, in contact with the other harbors on the west coast to have a unified strategy in negotiations with the Ministry of Transport.

The development in fishing was not favorable, so there were many considerations to be made, including whether the harbor’s economy would become a burden for Holmsland Municipality in the long run.

The municipality set up a working group that represented a broad spectrum of businesses, where we discussed the pros and cons.

The initial sentiment was that it would be good to become “masters of our own house” and thereby also have more development opportunities on the harbor’s areas.

We also needed to examine the state of the harbor, especially the quay structures, and we received good help from people who were familiar with these conditions.

The citizens and the fishery association were involved in the discussion, and there was general support for the municipality to take over the harbor on the condition that it appeared financially sensible.

We negotiated several times with the transport ministers Sonja Mikkelsen and Jacob Buksti and reached an agreement. We negotiated that Holmsland Municipality would receive DKK 8 million to take over the harbor to finance post-dredging work and restructuring.

A sensible agreement that a large majority of the municipal council approved.

In hindsight, I allow myself to say that it was right for the municipality to take over the harbor.

This has provided some completely different development opportunities for Hvide Sande Harbor and for the local community.

Did you know that: the activities at Hvide Sande Harbor have direct and indirect significance for 1,496 jobs (man-years) in 2024 throughout Denmark.

What is happening at the harbor?

We are continuously trying to develop and improve the harbor’s facilities and infrastructure and always have a series of activities ongoing.

The project to establish the new quay 109 is well underway after a contract was entered into with the construction company CG Jensen in October. The area behind Vattenfall is currently a construction site - the initial work of relocating various cables (electricity, district heating, water, sewage, fiber, etc.) is nearing completion, so they are laid outside the new hinterland area that will be part of the new quay. At the beginning of 2026, work on driving sheet piles will begin, after which the actual construction of the entire area will start. We expect the quay to be completed and ready for inauguration in October 2026 (Drawing shows the new quay area).

As part of the continued development of the harbor's strategic opportunities, work has been initiated to develop the northwest harbor area (the sand pit behind the west harbor) into a storage area for various types of goods, project goods, etc. The possibilities of use will be very flexible depending on customers' needs for storage. The area is approximately 30,000 and is initially designed for a load-bearing capacity of 18 tons/m2. Initially, the area will be projected, and a tender will be carried out, after which a final decision will be made about starting the task.

To meet the increasing need for more parking spaces on Beddingsvej near Hvide Sande Shipyard, an application has been initiated with Ringkøbing Skjern Municipality for permission to relocate 5 storage houses. When the permission is granted, hopefully starting in 2026, work on establishing a new parking area is expected to start.

Hvide Sande Harbor has received renewed ISO certifications for the standards 9001 (quality), 14001 (environment), and 45001 (work environment) for a new 3-year period. The certification is a significant part of the work of providing proper quality to our customers, as well as focusing on the environment and, not least, the work environment at Hvide Sande Harbor.

The mermaids swim every day of the year. They are two groups, swimming at 8 AM and 9 AM. They meet in the parking lot at Bølgen 5 minutes early and decide whether to swim from the beach or in the harbor entrance. It depends on the wind and weather, and of course, the season. From May to October, they only swim from the beach, while from October to May they have the option to swim in the harbor entrance when the harbor has laid out the swimming line.

At the swimming line, there is a shed for changing. The changing shed has been expanded for the 2025 season.

There are around 25 mermaids who swim regularly, along with a few who have holiday homes and come to swim during holidays and weekends.

Twice a year, the mermaids dine together at one of the city's eateries. They have a Facebook group