The Port of Rotterdam offers employment to some 60,000 locals, and another 250,000 elsewhere in The Netherlands. The direct gross added value of the port and industrial area amounts to 6.2 billion, corresponding to nearly 10% of the Dutch Gross National Product. The volume passing through Rotterdam equals approximately that of the second, third and fourth largest ports in Europe – Antwerp, Hamburg and Marseille – combined.

In 2004, the Port of Rotterdam succeeded in breaking through the 350 million ton barrier. Cargo throughput totalled 352 million tons, 7% more than in 2003 – surpassing the record from the previous year by 24 million tons.
“Still, we lost our long standing as the largest port in the world to Shanghai,” says Henk M.M. Samson, Manager of Traffic Control at the Rotterdam Port Authority. “We had increases in all areas; for example, the handling of coal was up 3%, ores and scrap 6% and other dry bulk cargoes 6%. The biggest increase was in the throughput of containers, which was up
by 16%.
“We are open every day of the year,
24 hours a day. We have established seven teams, each consisting of four people, to man the control centre,” continues Samson. The control room, situated on the 19th floor of the World Port Centre right next to the Erasmus Bridge in Rotterdam, is equipped with state-of-the-art screens on which the operators can see all ship movements and where all ships are identified by their name and IMO number – or something similar. It is reminiscent of an air traffic control centre.
“Our main aim is to ensure safe, smooth and environmentally sound ship operations in the Port,” says Duty Officer Peter E. van Es.
What is seen on the screens can also be seen by looking out at the breathtaking view of the port – but haze generally limits the view to within 40 kilometres of the control centre. The whole port is some
68 kilometres long.
“We work closely with the pilots who board vessels outside the port entrance,” continues Es. “The maximum draft we can take is 75 feet; there is only one vessel with an exemption from this: the ore carrier M/S Berge Stahl, which has a draft of 76 feet when fully loaded. When arriving with iron ore from Brazil, this vessel must come in to port at the right tidal window – high tide. The vessel is also very wide, and there are times when she has to wait before berthing,” says Es. “With the many vessels coming in every day the control centre can at times be quite hectic, like last week when a severely damaged container ship was to enter the port for repairs. She ran aground on the roads to Antwerp two weeks earlier, and a lot of meetings and paperwork were needed before she could safely enter the Port of Rotterdam.
“Apart from the huge traffic and cargo volumes, one big challenge is to dredge the port at all times. After all, we are at the mouth of a river – the Rhine – and sediments are naturally dumped here every year. We have three dredgers in permanent use, as it is our responsibility to maintain the depth ratio,” says Samson.
As for future plans for the Port, they can be summarised in one word: Growth.

Date: 08 February 2008