Starting on Monday 18 May at 6 a.m. until midnight on Saturday 23 May 2026, the Papenburg sea lock must be closed to all traffic for maintenance work. Passage between the Ems and the port of Papenburg via the short Sielkanal will then not be possible. The measure was announced by the responsible Ems-North Sea Waterways and Shipping Authority in a relevant Notices to Mariners (BfS) communicated.
Operating hours and fees for the sea lock
Papenburg is the southernmost seaport on the Ems, around 40 kilometres from the port of Emden and 70 kilometres from its mouth in the North Sea at Eemshaven in the Netherlands. The river is tidal; the average tidal range at Papenburg is around three metres.
The sea lock ensures that the harbour itself is independent of the tide. The current operating times and fees for use by pleasure craft are published by the town of Papenburg on their website.
Papenburg: Location of the Meyer Werft shipyard
The port of Papenburg and its lock are known throughout Germany thanks to the Meyer Werft shipyard based there. The company builds cruise ships there far inland, which, due to their large dimensions, can only be transferred from the harbour to the North Sea via the Ems in elaborately planned and coordinated operations after completion.
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Christian Tiedt
Editor Travel
