Value creation for Europe A first study on the value creation for Europe’s sustainable and competitive position by the combined ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp-Bruges

Description

The way in which European policymakers look at the value that the ports of Rotterdam and Antwerp-Bruges
generate, needs careful consideration. Their industries’ competitive position is under pressure and so is their
licence to operate, as they are still heavily fossil fuel based. But at the same time, the ports are surely part of
the solution, providing valuable assets, space, connections and competencies essential for Europe’s
industries’ competitive position, its energy and resource transition and its strategic autonomy.
The ports of Antwerp-Bruges and Rotterdam generate values that are at the same time economic, societal and
strategic. With their strong connectivity and integrated industrial clusters, they clearly facilitate a value
contribution to the wider European region. The ports together form a logistical and industrial complex with a
for Europe unique combination of scale, deep-sea location, space, large overlapping hinterland network,
existing integrated industrial cluster with a global scale, large inflow of green electricity and import of green
energy carriers. This cluster forms a basis for the energy and resource transition, that is so hard needed for
Europe’s competitive and sustainable future.
The trade-offs that are made for investments in ports – both at national and European level – are important for
Europe’s ambitions and must take an integrated perspective, i.e. taking all relevant values that the ports bring
into account. This is not an easy job because some of the value categories that ports generate - and that gain
in importance - are more societal and strategic in nature and lie beyond the borders of the individual port
regions. Given their wide European impact, these values should not be underestimated, even if their
measurement and quantification is challenging.
Although the ports’ industries add to the climate crisis and hence affect their own license-to-operate and
competitive position, the future path is clearly stated, amongst others in the report of Draghi. Europe needs
to focus on both the acceleration of decarbonization and on circularity, whilst simultaneously creating a level
playing field with international competitors - especially those that are based upon different market models
(like China): by investing in infrastructure and in innovation, and by streamlining the (cross-border) regulatory
framework. The values that the ports and their industrial clusters can bring for Europe - also for its future -
have been made clear in this study.
The present study also shows that there are benefits to be gained by applying an integrative perspective on the
ports of Antwerp-Bruges and Rotterdam in particular. The synergy realized by their combined scale,
overlapping networks, interconnections, complementarity and specialization makes that ‘their whole is
greater than the sum of their parts’. Strengthening their increasing collaboration could elevate these
advantages further, also for Europe.

Period	22 Sept 2024 → 14 Jan 2025
Work for	Erasmus Centre for Urban Port, Netherlands
Degree of Recognition	International