"The expansion of the branch canal as one of the arteries of transport in the region will secure Salzgitter as a business location in the long term and strengthen inland waterway transport, which is significantly more climate-friendly than truck traffic," emphasized Lord Mayor Frank Klingebiel at the ceremony to mark the start of construction of the branch canal.

He continued: "The 15-kilometre-long canal is to be made wider, deeper and therefore more efficient so that it can also be used for modern inland waterway vessels with a draught of 2.80 meters. To achieve this, numerous bridges will have to be raised while the canal is still in operation - a truly mammoth project. After a long negotiation and planning phase, we can now finally get started. I would like to thank the federal and state governments for investing a total of around 320 million euros in our business location."