Zeebrugge ranks among the fastest growing ports in the range between Le Havre and Hamburg.  Cargo traffic has hence increased spectacularly in Zeebrugge: every year, nearly 10,000 vessels moor in the port while cargo throughput rose from 14 million tons in 1985 to 42 million tons in 2007. Thanks to this development Zeebrugge is not only able to welcome ships with a large draught and tonnage but also to offer large terrains with deep water in the outer and inner port.

Zeebrugge offers a modern infrastructure, developed to meet the needs of roll-on/roll-off vessels and containerisation. The port has become a major multifaceted facility, handling unit loads (containers and trailers) new cars, conventional general cargo, "high & heavy" cargoes, dry and liquid bulk, and natural gas.

2,2 million cars a year

Zeebrugge is world's leading port for the transhipment of new cars and in 2007 handled more than 2,220,000 units.

The SeaRo, Wallenius-Wilhelmsen Lines, CTO, Toyota and CdMZ terminals together have a capacity of 110,000 cars a day. There are also four centers providing quality control and pre-delivery services. In addition to the Toyota Vehicle Logistics Center, car-makers using the port include DaimlerChrysler, Ford, General Motors, Mercedes, Volvo, BMW, Citroën, Peugeot, Rover, Volkswagen, Jaguar, Vauxhall, Renault, Suzuki and Mitsubishi, for example.

A major ro-ro center

Zeebrugge is a major European port for unaccompanied roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro) traffic. The port is equipped with 23 berths for roro vessels which together have a loading and discharging capacity of 3,500 lorries per 24 hours: in total nearly 1 million a year. 

Fourteen different UK ports (i.e. Dartford, Purfleet, Felixstowe, Grimsby, Immingham, Hull, Teesport (Middlesbrough), Southampton, Portbury, Sheerness, Killingholme, Rosyth, Dublin and Cork) are served with altogether up to 20 departures a day. The main shipping companies are Cobelfret, P&O Ferries, Dart Line, U.E.C.C., Superfast Ferries, KESS, Finnlines and Toyofuji. Other services include line sailings to Scandinavia and countries in southern Europe, such as Spain, Portugal, Italy, Greece, Turkey and Morocco.

Growing container port

In 2007 Zeebrugge handled more than 2 million TEU.

APM Terminals expanded its range of Maersk Line services at the Albert II dock. Existing services reached cruise speed. Also CMA CGM, China Shipping Container Line, Evergreen and the New World Alliance stepped up the frequency and the capacity between Europe and Asia.  The Zeebrugge container feeder network was extended with the services of Feederlink and Samskip. Shortsea operator C2C Lines (CdMC) started operations on its new terminal at the Albert II dock.

Its location on the coast and the deep draughts in the access channel (55 ft.) and along the quays all mean that the largest container vessels can be accommodated rapidly and without time loss, including the modern + 8,000 TEU container carriers. 2007 was marked by the maiden calls of the m/s Elly Maersk and the m/s Edith Maersk, vessels of 13,500 TEUs each. Anyhow, Zeebrugge is one of the few European ports that can handle such vessels.

From paper to fruit juice

Apart from roro and container traffic, Zeebrugge can also boast a large diversity of general cargo: fresh fruit, fruit juices, paper pulp, potatoes, high and heavy cargoes etc.

In the inner port Zeebrugge has specialized terminal facilities for the import and distribution of fresh fruit, mainly bananas and kiwis.  Since the installation of large deepfreeze warehouses, Zeebrugge has also gained importance as a discharge and storage port for deepfrozen products (Flanders Cold Center or  F.C.C.).  All food products are handled in the northern part of the inner port.  In this port area Tropicana runs a bottling facility with an annual capacity of 120 million litres of fresh fruit juice for European distribution.

Natural gas

Zeebrugge is one of Europe's largest gas terminals and a major port for liquefied natural gas imports.

Natural gas is supplied in liquefied form with methane tankers (in 2007 a total number of 33 LNG vessels called at Zeebrugge) or in gaseous form by pipelines through the "Sea Pipeline" from the gas fields off the coast of Norway and through the "Interconnector" from Great Britain. This gas is primarily destined for transit to France and other southern European countries.

Layout of the port

The Port of Zeebrugge on Flanders' North Sea coastline provides a deep-draught harbor and efficient terminal facilities for both global and niche players.

The outer port, built in the sea and protected by two long breakwaters, is accessible for ships without the use of locks. Owing to this direct access from the sea and the depth of the water in the access channel and along the quay walls (up to 16 m), the outer port is particularly adequate for quick container and roro traffic.

The Pierre Vandamme lock (500 m long, 57 m wide and up to 18.50 m deep) provides access to the inner port, which in turn has two large docks: the northern dock (14 m deep) and the southern canal dock (18.50 m deep). The quay areas around these docks are equipped with several terminals for the handling of new cars, conventional general cargo, containers and for logistic activities.

Finally, the port of Zeebrugge connects through to the port of Bruges, which is connected to the inner port via the Baudouin Canal.  Mainly construction materials and other bulk cargoes are loaded and unloaded in this area.

Hinterland Connections

Zeebrugge is known as a quick transit port and therefore has to guarantee the mobility of cargo flows in order to make sure that cargo reaches the hinterland quickly and without congestion.

The port has excellent connections with the main European motorways (E40, N49, E17 and A17). 

In Zeebrugge the railways are a major partner for the supply and conveyance of sea borne cargoes.  In 2006 rail traffic accounted for a cargo volume of 6 million tons. 

Since inland navigation can considerably relieve the congested motorways, the port authority is making efforts to convey more containers and new cars to and from Zeebrugge in this environment-friendly way. In the long run the deepening and widening of the existing Schipdonk Canal offers the ideal solution. In the meantime the deployment of estuary barges will secure the maritime link with the European inland navigation network.

Distribution zones

Because of its central location in Western Europe, the network of regular shipping links and the extensive network of motorways and railways to the large industrial and population centres, Zeebrugge is an excellent centre for distribution to all northern European markets. Most of the customers in Zeebrugge's hinterland can be served within 24 to 48 hours. Large conurbations such as Paris, Western Holland and industrial centres such as northern France and the Ruhr area are only 300 km away and can be reached in less than 5 hours. 66% of the freight is transported by road, rail transport accounts for 17 % of land transport and the inland navigation, especially to ports along the Rhine, is on the increase. 

These assets have convinced large companies such as StoraEnso, Tropicana, Bridgestone, Zespri, Danone and Toyota to decide on a distribution centre in Zeebrugge.

Source: Port of Zeebrugge, http://www.portofzeebrugge.be/