Thematic Area
Thematic Area
Thematic Area
Mega vessel stop-over: transhipment near the straits of Gibraltar
By Theo Notteboom The Straits of Gibraltar is strategically located on some of the most important East-West trade lanes. Ports in the wider region around the Straits have good reasons to convince shipping lines of making a call at their container terminal facilities for transhipment and interlining purposes. Algericas at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula was the first to reap the benefits of its geographical location. Its share in the total volume handled by the five ports considered in the graph reached close to 70% in the...
Thematic Area
Top-10 cruise ports in the Med
By Thanos Pallis Which are the top-10 cruise ports in the Meditteranean and its adjoining seas? PortEconomics co-director Thanos Palllis compiled the list of the 10 largest cruise ports in terms of passenger movements in 2014, and compared these figures to the years 2013 and 2010, in a single picture, with PortEconomics provides this information to its readers. The data were collected in the context of a statistical report prepared for MedCruise (the association of ports in the Med and its adjoining seas), with Thanos Pallis,...
Thematic Area
Holland vs. Belgium in the container business: do we have a winner?
By Theo Notteboom In 2014, 23.4% of the total European container port traffic was handled by Belgian and Dutch ports. With these figures, the Rhine-Scheldt Delta port region, which includes all Dutch and Belgian ports, is the most important port region in Europe - and PortEconomics co-director Theo Notteboom discusses the "Holland vs. Belgium" match in the container business: "In the late 1970s, Dutch ports handled three times more containers than Belgian ports. The graph demonstrates that the combined container volumes in the Belgian...
Thematic Area
Cruise ports: learning from statistics
This year's edition of the annual statistical report prepared by the MedCruise secretariat reveals some interesting trends in the regional cruise port industry. Thanos Pallis, PortEconomics co-director and secretary general of MedCruise (the Association representing cruise ports in the Med and its adjoining seas), provides his view point on the major lessons learnt in a commentary featured in the latest issue of International Cruise & Ferry Review (Spring/Summer 2015 ). You might freely download and read the commentary via...
Thematic Area
Are container port volumes in Europe above pre-crisis levels?
By Theo Notteboom Are container port volumes in Europe above pre-crisis levels? The answer is yes, says PortEconomics co-director Theo Notteboom. In 2014, the European container port system handled about 12% more containers than in 2007. So if you thought that the economic crisis left all European container ports with heavy traffic losses, then think again. In recent years, Europe has welcomed a number of fast rising stars such as Gdansk, Piraeus and Sines, all ports which particularly benefited from transhipment induced growth. The...
Thematic Area
Top-15 container ports in Europe
By Theo Notteboom The list of the top 15 of container ports in Europe has not changed dramatically over the past 30 years. PortEconomics co-director Theo Notteboom compiled the list of the 15 largest container ports in Europe for 2014 and compared these figures to the years 1985 and 2000 - and PortEconomics provides this information in a single picture: Tilbury, Leghorn and Marseille left the top 15 in the early 1990s. Their places were taken in by the emerging Mediterranean transhipment hubs Gioia Tauro, Marsaxlokk (Malta)...
Thematic Area
Cruise terminals site selection process: an institutional analysis of the Kai Tak cruise terminal
How is a cruise terminal selected? what is the role of institutional factors in site selection and terminal evolution? When the Asian cruise market turn one of the most dynamics around the globe, the latest study of PortEconomics members Thanos Pallis and Adolf Ng, along along with Yui-Yip Lau and Ka-Chai Tam provide an institutional analysis on how the site of Hong Kong's Kai Tak Cruise Terminal (KTCT) was selected following the closure of Kai Tak Airport in 1998. The study focuses on how the struggle of the preexisting cruise terminal...
Thematic Area
Keeping it cool: challenges for the containerised reefer trade
Refrigerated containers, also known as reefers, account for a growing share of the refrigerated cargo being transported around the world. In 1980, 33% of the refrigerated transport capacity in maritime shipping was containerised, this share rapidly climbed to 72% in 2013. Because of the additional insulation, and particularly because of the power plant, a 40-foot reefer costs in the range of 6 times more than a regular container. A cold chain industry has emerged to service containerised reefer trade. So, how can we "keep it cool"? What are...
Thematic Area