OUR
SERVICES
Shipping
BREB traces its origins to Bremer Reederei Eilemann & Bischoff GmbH, founded in Bremen in 1951, and has since evolved into an integrated shipping and logistics company. Its operations encompass its own fleet, chartering, cargo handling, port agency and logistics services, with locations in Bremen, Cuxhaven, Sassnitz and Bruges.
BREB's fleet comprises multipurpose vessels with deadweight capacities ranging from 3,000 to 9,000 tonnes. Operating across a trading area extending from the White Sea to the Black Sea, the vessels carry a wide range of dry cargoes, including bulk, breakbulk and project cargo.
BREB's chartering department develops tailored solutions for different vessel capacity and transport requirements, handling international shipments in the conventional shipping sector. Complementing these activities, the logistics department arranges hinterland transport by road, rail and inland waterway.
Liner
Services
BREB operates several of its own liner services. The BREB Hull-Line connects Sweden and Riga with Hull on the east coast of the United Kingdom.
The BREB Continental Line links the Baltic States and German, Dutch and Belgian North Sea ports with the Iberian Peninsula, North Africa and the Mediterranean.
The BREB Adriatic Parcel Service carries forest products, steel products, containers and project cargo from Adriatic ports to North African destinations, including Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya and Egypt. The service also offers connections to the Iberian Peninsula and the Levant as required.
The Slovenian port of Koper, a major hub for a wide range of cargo types in the northern Adriatic, ranks BREB as the liner operator with the highest number of sailings in the conventional cargo segment.
BREB offers up to three sailings per week from the Adriatic.
Port Agency
BREB provides port agency services for shipping companies, charterers, shipowners and offshore projects at all German ports and in the Antwerp–Zeebrugge region. Its operational experience as a shipowner and liner operator provides a thorough understanding of complex port operations and vessel requirements.
BREB has decades of experience as a liner agent, representing international short-sea car carriers, container and semi-conventional shipping services, as well as ferry operators along the German North Sea and Baltic coasts and in the Scheldt region.
In Cuxhaven, BREB acts as port agent for vessels calling at the Blue Water BREB Terminal. Depending on operational requirements, the company arranges loading and discharging operations and associated services, including lashing and unlashing, welding and flame cutting.
As a husbandry agent, BREB looks after vessels with the same care and attention it gives its own fleet, providing comprehensive support to ships, crews and management. Services include the supply of provisions, consumables, spare parts and other operational requirements. BREB also represents masters and shipowners in dealings with port authorities and other regulatory bodies, ensuring professional and dependable support throughout each port call.
Particular emphasis is placed on the offshore wind sector. BREB's experience ranges from the mobilisation of large wind turbine installation vessels and general agency services during offshore wind farm construction to the coordination of crew changes in port, at sea or by helicopter. This extensive practical experience enables BREB to handle even the most demanding offshore agency requirements.
Offshore
In the offshore sector, BREB supports maritime projects along the German North Sea and Baltic coasts. The company coordinates the transport of a wide range of components for the wind energy industry, including subsea cables and other specialised cargo. Its service portfolio also includes port agency services for cable-laying vessels, installation vessels, survey and offshore support vessels, crew transfer vessels (CTVs), platform supply vessels (PSVs), anchor handling tugs, trailing suction hopper dredgers, tugs, barges and heavy-lift vessels.
With locations in Cuxhaven and Sassnitz, BREB maintains a presence close to Germany's offshore wind development areas. The company also has longstanding port agency experience in Bremen, Bremerhaven, Stade and the Ostend–Zeebrugge region, supported by its own branch office in Belgium.
In 2016, Blue Water Shipping and BREB established the joint venture Blue Water BREB GmbH to jointly support projects for the wind energy, oil and gas industries in German ports. The partnership combines international project logistics capabilities with regional market knowledge and local port expertise.
Since 2017, Blue Water BREB has also been responsible for terminal operations in Cuxhaven. These activities include stevedoring, terminal handling, warehousing and truck loading as part of long-term partnerships with industrial customers.
Forwarding
BREB develops integrated logistics and transport solutions across international supply chains. Its services encompass warehousing, inland waterway, rail and road transport, as well as the deployment of its own vessel capacity for worldwide shipments.
Since 2019, BREB has also operated as a freight forwarder, arranging road transport using its own trucks. Its services are complemented by import and export clearance and customs-related activities.
A particular focus of BREB's forwarding operations is intermodal freight transport and the coordination of complex logistics chains. Whether transporting high-quality paper reels by road, arranging intermediate storage and transhipment onto MAFI trailers for onward shipment by RoRo ferry to northern destinations, or receiving Scandinavian pulp by sea and forwarding it in groups of rail wagons to Southern Europe and the Balkans, with connecting sea transport to North Africa, BREB has successfully managed a wide range of demanding multimodal transport operations.
A notable example is the combined rail-sea service Baltic Sea Bridge. As part of this project, the joint venture partners operated a container liner service between Baltiysk and Mukran, forming an integral link in the New Silk Road transport corridor between China and Europe. The service continued until the outbreak of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine.
Since 2019, BREB GmbH & Co. KG has been a member of the International Rail Transport Committee (CIT – Comité international des transports ferroviaires) and is officially authorised to arrange container transport from China, including the sea leg, through to the final consignee in Germany under a single international CIM rail consignment note.
Customs
BREB provides comprehensive customs clearance and support services, helping customers streamline their logistics processes and minimise risks. Its services range from import and export clearance, customs transit procedures and the handling of goods in temporary storage and customs warehouses to customs compliance support for complex logistics projects.
A particular focus is on supporting companies in the wind energy and offshore industries. BREB manages customs formalities for wind turbines and their components, including special customs procedures such as temporary exports and the clearance of returned goods. Its customer base also includes cargo interests involved in European maritime freight transport.
Beyond standard customs procedures, BREB develops tailored solutions to meet the specific requirements of industrial companies, shipping lines, freight forwarders and other businesses operating in the port and maritime sectors. Close coordination with customers, customs authorities and other stakeholders, together with the management of documentation and operational interfaces, forms an integral part of its daily activities.
By closely integrating customs clearance with port operations, cargo handling and maritime transport, BREB ensures that even complex cargo movements can be coordinated efficiently and handled reliably.