EMEA News
More Huge Ships, Less Volume for Antwerp in 2012
The port of Antwerp says it handled 1.6 percent less freight in 2012 than 2011, but the number of ultra-large container carriers calling at the port rose from 141 to 167.
The port handled 184 million tonnes of freight, with container freight volumes holding fairly steady at 8.6 million twenty-foot-equivalent units (TEU) and ro/ro volume rising 13 percent to 4.8 million tonnes.
The amount of steel moving through the port fell 19 percent to 6.8 million tonnes, while the number of cars rose 15 percent to 1.2 million, and paper and cellulose rose 17 percent to 895,593 tonnes.
Liquid bulk fell 1.6 percent to 45 million tonnes, although oil derivatives were up 7.2 percent to 32 million tonnes, and dry bulk held steady at 19 million tonnes.
The total number of calls by seagoing ships fell 4.5 percent to 14,556, but calls by container carriers of more than 10,000 TEU rose 18 percent to 167.
The port said the increased calls by ultra-large ships reflects the benefits of the 2010 deepening of the Scheldt river, which allowed ships with a draught of up to 15.5 meters to access the port, according to its website.
Use of the largest sizes of containerships, which offer better fuel efficiency per TEU compared to smaller vessels, is growing with 48 ships of 10,000 TEU or more scheduled for delivery in 2013.
