Antwerp is calling

Normally, Brussels is warm and pleasant in September. But last Monday morning, it looked like bad weather was in store, with rain and winds bringing the temperature down. One felt that even Nature was saddened by the deepening financial crisis in the Euro zone. We, a press team from India, were told to carry windcheaters or warm jackets as we set out on a boat trip to the Port of Antwerp on the banks of the river Scheldt.

As we sailed along, the weather relented, gifting us a bright, sunny day. One hoped something like that — a silver lining — would appear soon on Europe's economic horizon. A silver lining that has been elusive till now, as efforts of bankers and governments at Brussels, the headquarters of European Union, to work out a solution to the debt crisis, are yet to bear results.

Despite the current gloom that envelops the European economy, the Port of Antwerp expects its throughput to increase by 10 per cent this year to 190 million tonnes. In the first six months of 2011, the port handled 96 million tonnes of freights, against 87 million in the same period last year.

The second largest port in Europe (after Rotterdam), Antwerp, with a quay length of more than 150 km, handles all types of cargoes — containers, dry bulk, break-bulk and liquid bulk.

According to Mr Eddy Bruyninckx, CEO of Antwerp Port Authority, it is difficult to make any prediction on the future impact of the debt crisis on the port. But he is optimistic. “We recovered very well from the previous global financial crisis. Container traffic has been again on a record level.

In 2008 we set a record for container handling; last year we did it again. This makes us confident for the future,” says Mr Bruyninckx.

Fastest route to Europe

For Indian exporters, Antwerp is the fastest route to Europe as 60 per cent of Europe's purchasing power can be reached in a day. No other European port can offer this, says Mr Bruyninckx. “For container traffic, India is in the top 10 of our most important regions and its position is growing”.

Several shipping lines including Shipping Corporation of India operate regular services to Antwerp from Mumbai, Chennai, Mundra and Jawaharlal Nehru ports. Large Indian companies such as Reliance Essar and Jindal have been routing their goods to Europe through Antwerp.

Several Indian logistics firms already have facilities at Antwerp. Till date this year, Antwerp has handled more than six million tonnes of Indian cargo, which is 10 per cent more than the same period last year.

Antwerp Port, which has two offices in India — in Mumbai and Pune — expects to attract more exporters, logistics providers and investors from India.

“We are not just a transit port; we help value addition to the products we handle. We have large bonded warehouses with modern facilities for exporters to covert bulk and standard products to their customers' specification,” said Mr Luc Arnouts, Chief Commercial Manger of Antwerp Port Authority, giving an overview of the port prior to our guided tour to the terminals.

As our boat cruised along the calm waters of the Scheldt that flows across Belgium and into the North Sea, we witnessed a large number of ships berthed at terminals on either side of the river — a picturesque photo opportunity.

On one side, at the home terminal of the Mediterranean Shipping Company, four to five large container vessels were loading and unloading boxes.

On the other side, DP World's break-bulk terminal, the largest in Europe, was busy loading construction equipment on a ship bound for Africa. Ahead, on the same side as the bulk terminal, one could see a large quantity of coal which was awaiting quality inspection.

Value addition

At another end is an all-weather steel terminal with a large warehouse where exporters cut and shape their products to suit their buyers' requirement. We were told that some of the leading Indian steel producers have been using this terminal for exports to Europe.

There is also a large chemicals and petrochemical complex at the port which houses the production facilities of large companies such as BASF, Bayer, Lanxess, Total and Exxon Mobil.

Last but not least are the nuclear power plants and wind farms near the port, which generate more power than what is locally consumed. No wonder, the port is now offering power though shore-to-ship connections. This helps reduce pollution as the ships can switch off their engines.

The Antwerp port is connected with the hinterland by road, rail and barges. What is interesting is that the port, with the help of the European Union, is trying to reduce the movement of cargo by road and replace it by rail to cut transport cost and environmental impact.

The EU has even provided a subsidy to an inland truck-rail terminal run by a private sector joint venture.

Recently, the port announced a direct rail link to the Chinese city of Chongqing, a distance of 10,000 km. A train trip from Antwerp to Chongqing will take 20 to 25 days; while by ship it takes 40 days to transport cargo from Belgium to Chinese ports.

Our guide on board, Mr Danny Deckers, a senior advisor to the port and a veteran on maritime matters, knows every part of the port, its terminals and warehouses. Mr Deckers has several interesting facts about the port at his fingertips.

Antwerp has the largest stock of coffee in the world — which has a determining effect on its price in the global market. The commodity comes from several countries, from Brazil to Africa.

Largest warehouse

Antwerp has 5.5 million square meters of covered warehouse, the largest anywhere in Europe. Katoen Natie, the largest one, alone has a covered space larger than the entire warehouse facility at the rival port of Rotterdam.

On an average, Antwerp handles 15,000 ocean going ships and more than 65,000 inland vessels in a year. The port handles container ships that require a draught of 15.5 meters. Ships with capacity of 14, 000 TEUs now call at the port twice a week. The container terminal has one of the highest productivity rates of 40 moves per hour.

Standing on the upper deck, Mr Deckers gave us details of every vessel we passed by — including dredgers, LNG tankers, barges, cruise ships, car carriers and other specialised vessels. There was also a vessel recovered from Somali pirates.

As the cold wind continued to blow, he took us to the lower deck, where the chef on board greeted us with a range of drinks, from strong hot coffee to sparkling wine, to help us warm up.

Business plan

There has been no government in Belgium for more than a year (only a caretaker one). But Antwerp is going ahead with its business plan slated for completion by 2013. As part of this, the port is trying to buy back about 90 hectares of land from General Motors, which closed down its plant at Antwerp. This land is expected to be offered to logistics companies to set up facilities. Indian logistics companies looking for a European presence can bid for this, said a port officer.

Mr Deckers also briefed us on the history of the port. During the French occupation of Belgium, Napolean built a lock gate at Antwerp harbour so that he could attack England in case of war. That was the fist dock; the second was built by a Dutch king.

The port of Antwerp is probably the best model for a landlord port. Unlike in India, where all major ports are owned by the Government, all terminals at Antwerp are run by private operators. The Port Authority of Antwerp is only a facilitator for the more than 800 concessionaires.

The CEO has been with the port for nearly 20 years — a fact that would be met with disbelief in India, where bureaucrats come to head major ports at the fag end of their careers, with most of them seeing a ship up close perhaps for the first time in their life.

An important and interesting aspect of the working of the Port Authority of Antwerp is that it tries to bring the people of the city close to the port. They are told how crucial the port is for the development of the city. This is, again, in sharp contrast to the Indian situation. The people of Mumbai have nary an idea bout what Mumbai Port Trust does — or doesn't.

It's not the best of times in Europe. So, what explains the growth in throughput at the port? “People need food, clothes, medicine and other essentials. So long as they keep buying these goods, the port will have cargo,” said Mr Raj Khalid, the representative of Antwerp port in India.

Not all terminal operators at Antwerp share this optimism. Many of them, probably haunted by the fear of the 2008 crisis, have put off their investment plans. As we have seen on numerous occasions, there are opportunities in every crisis. The challenge lies in identifying them and making them count.

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