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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...
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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...
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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...
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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)...
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Emerging 'opportunity spaces' in the port industry
Peter de Langen contributed to the 'Jornadas Logisticas' in Malaga, co-organised bij the Andalucian Maritime Cluster and Malagaport. Peter spoke about emerging 'opportunity spaces' in the port industry, opportunities for Andalucia and the need for a well functioning innovation ecosystem to grasp these opportunities.
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Coal handling at the port of Thessaloniki
By George Vaggelas PortEconomics member George Vaggelas contributes to the latest issue of Dry Cargo International magazine (February 2015) with an article presenting the business of coal handling at the Port of Thessaloniki (Greece). Coal is one of the major dry bulk cargoes in the global trade. The port of Thessaloniki is the major dry bulk port in Greece and one of the biggest in the Southern Balkan area. Coal handling plays a significant role for the port's total throughput. Currently, the port of Thessaloniki is investing in the...
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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...
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The Analyst: port of Hong-Kong 2030-compliments and comments
The development plan for Hong Kong Port, released December 2014, makes interesting reading for port planners and developers. PortEconomics co-director Peter de Langen, provides compliments to all stakeholders involved in the preparation of the plan, and provides commentary on its content. Peter's viewpoint is available via his column as "the Analyst" PortStrategy: Compliments and Comments...
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