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Cargo throughput in the port of Rotterdam remained virtually unchanged in the first half of 2024 compared to the same period last year. Cargo throughput reached 220.0 million tonnes. This is 0.3% lower than in the same period in 2023 (220.7 million tonnes). The decline was mainly due to less handling of coal, crude oil and other liquid bulk.

In contrast, throughput of iron ore and scrap, other dry bulk, mineral-oil products and containers increased. Container throughput increased by 4.2% (in tonnage) and 2.2% (in TEUs) due to increasing (consumer) demand and an early peak season. Port of Rotterdam Authority investments were on track in the first half of the year. This includes construction starting on CO₂ transport and storage project Porthos, awarding of the contract for the construction of the Prinses Alexia viaduct and the Port of Rotterdam Authority invested in making the port of Rotterdam more digitally resilient.

• Cargo throughput almost the same (-0.3%)
• Growth in container throughput continues (+4.2%)
• Port of Rotterdam Authority posts solid operating result
• High investment level Port of Rotterdam Authority
• Construction of Porthos begins

Boudewijn Siemons, CEO of Port of Rotterdam Authority: “After a period of economic uncertainty, we see demand for raw materials and consumer products starting to increase. This led to growth in container throughput in the first half of the year. Whether that trend will continue in other segments will depend partly on the pace of the European industry’s recovery in the coming months. In the meantime, we are holding a steady course and continue to invest in and implement projects to make the energy and raw materials transitions a success and further improve the infrastructure of the port and industrial complex.”

Economic value creation

Finances of the Port of Rotterdam Authority

The Port of Rotterdam Authority’s financial results were robust in the first half year of 2024. Compared to the first half of 2023, revenues – earned primarily from seaport dues and rental and leasehold income – increased by € 23.0 million to € 439.6 million. Operating expenses increased by € 13.3 million to € 147.9 million. As a result, earnings before tax, interest, depreciation and amortisation rose by € 9.7 million to € 291.7 million. The net result increased by € 31.7 million to € 148.2 million. The larger increase in net result is caused by two items from 2023 for a combined €15.3 million, which will not be repeated this year.

Gross investments in the first half of 2024 amounted to € 164.4 million, including capital injections in participating interests (HY1 2023: € 135.7 million). The main investment in the first half of 2024 is the widening of the Yangtzekanaal (€15.8 million). Of the capital injections, €20.4 million relates to Porthos.

Throughput

Dry bulk

Dry bulk handling increased by 2.1% compared to the same period last year. The increase is mainly driven by higher throughput volumes of iron ore and scrap. This segment increased by 12.6% to 14.6 million tonnes due to higher steel and iron production in Germany in the first half of the year. Throughput of coal decreased by 2.4 million tonnes (-19.7%) due to low demand for thermal coal for power generation. Solar and wind are increasingly used as renewable sources for power generation. Throughput of coking coal also fell, despite the increase in steel production in Germany. Due to sufficient stock accumulation last year, supply decreased in the first half of the year.

Throughput of agribulk decreased by 1.2 million tonnes due to low demand for soybeans as a result of certain processes moving to the United States. Other dry bulk (raw materials for various industrial applications and the construction sector) shows an increase. The throughput figures for agribulk (-19.3%) and other dry bulk (80.7%) show large deviations compared to 2023. Due to a correction in 2023 to an erroneous declaration in the seaport dues system in 2022, these figures show a distorted picture. Without the correction, agribulk shows a decrease of 5.1% and other dry bulk shows an increase of 20.7%.

Liquid bulk

In the first half of the year, 3.1% less liquid bulk was handled. Some 5.8% less crude oil was handled due to maintenance at some Rotterdam refineries in the first quarter. As a result, lower volumes were processed and fewer imports were needed. Throughput of mineral oil products rose 4.7% to 28.6 million tonnes in the first half of the year. At 6.0 million tonnes (0.3%) in the first half of the year, throughput of LNG was similar to last year. Large reserves have been built up for both segments since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine to strengthen energy security. The other liquid bulk segment declined by 7.9%.

Containers and breakbulk

In the first half of the year, container throughput increased by 4.2% in tonnes to 67.1 million tonnes by 2.2% expressed in TEUs, to 6.8 million TEU. The first quarter already saw a slight recovery in container throughput. This trend continued in the second quarter. This is a direct consequence of an increase in demand for consumer goods. Additionally, there is an early peak season as importers order their products earlier than usual due to longer sailing times and fluctuating sailing schedules. Ships have not passed through the Suez Canal since late 2023, due to turmoil in the Red Sea.

The container market is still adjusting to this new situation. Due to the longer sailing time via the Cape of Good Hope, there are challenges with finding sufficient vessel capacity. Changes in sailing schedules, increased demand and bad weather in Asia have also caused congestion at ports in Asia, the Middle East and southern Europe. Despite the fact that congestion in north-western Europe has so far been limited, there are implications for port and hinterland operations. Ship arrivals are more difficult to plan due to changes in schedules. Additionally, callsizes have also increased substantially since the start of the Red Sea crisis. As a result, terminals and hinterland modalities face peak loads, leading to delays in container handling.

Roll-on Roll-off (RoRo) traffic decreased by 4.1% to 12.8 million tonnes due to a weak UK economy. The other breakbulk segment fell 10.5% to 3.1 million tonnes. This is due to the containerisation of general cargo and the shifting of various cargo packages to other ports.

Societal value creation

Energy and raw materials transitions

There is a lot of construction going on at the port at the moment. The hydrogen pipeline is being constructed, the Porthos CO₂ transport and storage project is being built, and Shell’s 200MW hydrogen plant is emerging on the first conversion park. At the second conversion park, which has space for 1 GW of electrolysis, Zeevonk II will build an electrolyser. This consortium of Vattenfall and CIP won the tender for lot Beta of the IJmuiden Ver wind farm. The hydrogen economy now seems to have really taken off. At the same time, there are also headwinds. For instance, it was recently announced that the construction of the Delta Rhine Corridor, which includes the hydrogen pipeline towards other Dutch and German industrial clusters, will be delayed by four years. This would greatly slow down the energy transition.

It is vital that everything possible is done to accelerate this process, with a view to increasing sustainability and the competitiveness of industry clusters in the Netherlands and Europe. High grid-connection costs, high electricity prices and regulations inhibiting energy transition are also causing delays. Decision-making relating to investments in hydrogen production is still lagging. There is, however, regulatory movement around the refinery route which will boost demand for green hydrogen. The Port Authority will continue to promote to the government the importance of a good investment climate. Meanwhile, shore power capacity in the port is growing, four parties are participating in the bidding process for the floating solar park on the Slufter and opportunities are being explored for further cooperation in the field of heat, the use of steam and the development of sustainable aviation through biofuels and hydrogen.

Steps are also being taken in the transition from fossil molecules to carbon-neutral molecules. The Port Authority is currently developing a vision and strategy on its role in this raw materials transition. This examines not only the port’s role in renewable fuel production, but also looks at critical materials. These are essential for achieving the energy transition, and also of great importance for the strategic independence of the Netherlands and Europe. 

Digitalisation & Cyber resilience

With digital threats increasing these days, resilience against society-disrupting threats is a prerequisite for the smooth functioning of the port’s nautical and logistics processes. In the first half of 2024, important steps were taken in the field of digitalisation and cyber resilience. The Port Authority supports the Secure Chain. This public-private partnership aims to make supply chains more digitally resilient, including against crime and theft. Through a new digital way of working, parties exchange information in a closed system.

The right to pick up a container at the terminal can thereby only be transmitted digitally to authorised carriers. The Secure Chain eliminates the possibility of unlawful container collection. The Seaport Police is noticing that, by working through the Secure Chain, this actually no longer happens. Meanwhile, 43% of all import containers go through the Secure Chain. All import containers from Latin America and North America have been part of this way of working since this year. Work is now underway to expand further into other shipping zones.

And in May this year, a consortium of Port of Rotterdam Authority, Q*Bird, Single Quantum, Cisco, Eurofiber, Portbase, Intermax and InnovationQuarter succeeded in being the first in the world to build a scalable quantum network connection in the port of Rotterdam. Securing sensitive information through the use of quantum technology has proven successful in a test case. In future, this new communication system should improve the security of the tens of thousands of seagoing vessels that visit the port every year and also better secure the resulting economic traffic from the threat of quantum computers. Currently, two endpoints at Portbase and the Port Authority are connected to the central hub of the quantum network. In light of the success of the trial, new endpoints at Customs and a number of nautical service providers in the port will be connected to the central hub over the course of this year.

Outlook

Throughput

A slight increase in throughput is expected for the year as a whole. Increased container volumes are a harbinger of this. Furthermore, accumulated stocks in other segments have been run down and European industrial production appears to be picking up cautiously on the back of lower energy prices.

Importance of European cooperation greater than ever

Energy and raw materials transitions are currently the biggest challenges facing European ports. Ports and industry in North-West Europe are therefore increasingly pulling together to secure a sustainable future for European industry and society.

Boudewijn Siemons, CEO of Port of Rotterdam Authority: “The European economy only has a future if the energy and raw materials transitions succeed. Ports play a crucial role in this. We therefore need to think and act more based on that cross-border interest. The faster Europe becomes independent of fossil fuels, the greater the chance of strategic autonomy. Delay means we remain geopolitically vulnerable, which is bad for the Netherlands as well as for Europe. A firm commitment from the Netherlands in Brussels, championing the interests of seaports in the energy and raw material transitions, is now more important than ever.”

In the transition from fossil to renewable energy, challenges around nitrogen, grid congestion and permitting currently play a hampering role. Predictable and competitive market conditions for investments in making industry more sustainable and the availability of sufficient raw materials are also crucial for a successful transition. Therefore, stable policies and strong incentives for green energy and a circular economy are needed in the coming years, both from The Hague and from Brussels.