High debts, downward trend – things haven’t been looking good for Cuxhaven for a long time. Now the city at the mouth of the Elbe wants to rehabilitate itself through the energy transition. But this is not the first time that there has been a spirit of optimism. Can it succeed this time?
Uwe Santjer has a dream: coaches should drive visitors through the port industrial area of Cuxhaven. Past the turbine housings for wind turbines, as big as single-family homes. Past the 80-meter-long rotor blades that are stacked here like boards in a surfing school. Cuxhaven is the most important transshipment point for the German wind power industry. And Mayor Santjer would like to market this as a tourist attraction.