In 1919, the Prussian State Railways ordered a single electric locomotive from BMAG and MSW to work the railway in the Altona harbor. This was already the third electric locomotive on this line, since the earlier EV 1/2 and EV 3/4 could not fulfill the requirements. The main obstacle on this line was a tunnel that connects the station and the harbor. This does not only have a tight curve and a height difference of 30 meters over a distance of less than one kilometer, but also a wet environment.
This line was electrified with single-phase AC, but with 6,300 instead of 15,000 volts. The locomotive was designed in a crocodile layout, what means that its two small hoods were mounted on top of the bogies and swiveled in curves. Each axle was powered by two traction motors. The locomotive was delivered in 1923 and numbered EV 5II after the first EV 5 had just been retired. From 1926, it was numbered E 73 05. When the overhead AC electrification was dismantled in 1954 due to the electrification of the Hamburg S-Bahn with third rail DC, the locomotive was retired.