CEO warns port will soon reach maximum capacity.
The Port of Antwerp handled 118.6 million metric tons of cargo during the first half of 2018, an increase of 6.5 percent from the same six-month period last year and a new record for the port, according to the latest data from the Antwerp Port Authority.
The port authority attributed the surge in volumes primarily to strong growth in containerized freight, volumes of which jumped 8.3 percent year-over-year to nearly 5.6 million TEUs (66.3 million metric tons) in the first half. First-half container volumes were boosted by a May during which the port set a new all-time monthly record with more than 1 million TEUs handled.
In non-containerized cargoes, Antwerp saw total roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro) vehicle volumes grow 5.2 percent to 2.7 million metric tons, but conventional breakbulk volumes dropped 6.5 percent year-over-year to just over 5 million metric tons.
The port authority said an 8.5 percent decline in iron and steel imports in the first six months of the year was caused by the imposition of antidumping measures on Chinese steel by the European Union, but noted that imports of steel from India were also “well below” 2017 levels.
Steel exports from Antwerp, on the other hand, climbed 7.2 percent in the first half as companies increased exports to the United States “in an effort to beat the American import tariffs which came into force in June,” the authority said.
“However, it is expected that these tariffs will also have an indirect negative effect on imports of iron and steel,” it added. “Given the expected dumping of steel from all over the world on the European market as a consequence of the American tariff measures, the EU itself will probably be obliged to take measures to protect its own markets.”
Liquid and dry bulk volumes at the Port of Antwerp rose 6.1 percent and 3.1 percent, respectively, compared with the first half of 2017.
The port handled 223.6 million metric tons of freight for the full year in 2017, a 4.4 percent increase from 2016 and a fifth consecutive annual record.
“The strong performance of the Port of Antwerp, our main economic engine, is good news for the Belgian economy in general,” Jacques Vandermeiren, CEO of the Antwerp Port Authority, said of the results. “The growth figures confirm our role as a leading world player and demonstrate the continuing attractiveness of the port.
“But they also confirm the previous forecasts that we will soon reach our maximum container capacity,” he said. “During the past period we have well exceeded the optimum utilization level for the terminals below the locks, which can have a negative impact on efficiency. We will therefore continue to emphasize the importance of having additional and commercially useful container capacity below the locks.”
Port Alderman Marc Van Peel said that although the port authority was happy to see the federal government approve an expansion project that would bring additional cargo-handling capacity to Antwerp, now is the time to conduct feasibility and environmental studies in order to truly put the plan in motion.
“Everybody stands to gain from a solution that will enable us to achieve the desired sustainable growth for our port,” he said. “In this connection, mobility is a constant concern for the port authority, to which it gives highest priority, and it goes without saying that we are prepared to take the right series of measures with all stakeholders. Creating additional commercially useful container capacity below the locks is a first step for us in the further development of the port.”
Antwerp volumes surge on record container cargoes
