Last Friday, 19th April, the Chamber carried out a corporate guided visit to the Port of Antwerp, together with partner companies and other organisations interested in getting to know first-hand one of the largest ports in Europe and the second largest in terms of total cargo transported.

Patrick Van Cauwenberghe, Business Development Manager of the Port of Antwerp for the United Kingdom, was in charge of welcoming the participants, starting with an explanation of the different areas of the port on an aerial map.

The participants were then able to visit the conference room of the port authority building, where Van Cauwenberghe continued his presentation, explaining the history of the Port of Antwerp-Bruges, unified in April 2022 as a single platform for both facilities.

In 2023, it was the 13th largest container freight port in the world, with 13.5 million tonnes of cargo transported. Its activity accounts for 4.5% of Belgian GDP, making it one of the country’s main economic engines.

The presentation was followed by a guided bus tour of the facilities, with detailed explanations of each area. In addition to intermodal cargo transport stations and the presence of numerous industries related to port activity, the facilities have numerous green plots reserved for nature conservation, in line with the Sustainable Development Goals which guide the management of the Port.