Annual Report 2006

On the one hand, the Port of Amsterdam must
maintain its competitive strength and retain its
market shares in the healthy profit-generating
goods segments. Only then can it continue to be
an economic engine and provide jobs and revenue.
On the other hand, port-related economic activities
need to take place in a socially responsible and
environmentally friendly manner. In 2006, the Port
of Amsterdam was active on four fronts: the market,
physical space, better access and sustainability.
The market
In 2006, the emphasis was very much on strengthening
the Port of Amsterdam as an international
logistics hub, with the aim of maintaining its longterm
competitive strength and providing top-quality
infrastructure and facilities. To that end, Amsterdam
needs a greater number of ships and bigger volumes
of cargo. Greater economies of scale allow us to
charge customers competitive rates for nautical
and logistics services. Likewise, this makes for
attractively priced raw materials and components,
which are used by manufacturing companies in
the port area. Also, greater economies of scale
make it possible to provide efficient and very
frequent services to hinterland destinations.
On many fronts, the Port performed particularly
well in 2006. The container sector and the energy
business (oil, coal and renewables) in particular
grew strongly. In addition, more ships called at the
Port of Amsterdam.
To serve the rapidly growing Asian market better,
the Port of Amsterdam opened a permanent office
in the Chinese city of Shanghai in 2006. Since
early 2006, two container shipping services between
Europe and Japan and China have used the Ceres
Paragon terminal.
In the Hamburg-Le Havre range of ports, the
Amsterdam Ports (the Port of Amsterdam plus
three nearby North Sea canal ports) market share
grew from 7.0% to 7.5%. Equally noteworthy,
Amsterdam Ports has now become the fourthlargest
port in Northwestern Europe.
Physical space
The amount of land leased out by the Port increased
substantially in 2006. Some 80 hectares (gross)
were allocated to companies active in the port area,
whereas the annual average over the past ten
years had hovered around 25 hectares. The Port
is carefully husbanding its land resources using
various means: utilizing space intensively and
optimally; buying back sites no longer used; as
well as restructuring existing sites. In 2006, 23.7
hectares of land leased out concerned restructured
sites. Most of this went to Handelsveem in the
Westhaven (13.6 hectares) and Greenmills in the
Hornhaven (9 hectares).
Companies have shown a keen interest in Atlaspark
– the last port section where (dry) land is still
available. In 2006, the Port began discussions on
the construction of a distribution center in Atlaspark
with the property developer David Hart Vastgoed
Groep, reaching an agreement early 2007.
Better access
An international logistics hub requires very good
infrastructure in terms of quality and capacity.
That applies to both the water-related and the
land-related facilities. In 2006, much progress
was made in improving the port’s accessibility.
The IJgeul canal was both deepened and extended.
(The IJgeul canal forms the link between the
sea and the North Sea Canal, which runs all the
way to Amsterdam.) Furthermore, much preparatory
work was done to bring forward the decision
to build the much-needed second canal lock in
IJmuiden (where the North Sea Canal discharges
into the sea) from 2008 to the first half of 2007.
In terms of land-based facilities, the Port of
Amsterdam is working hard to make more
intensive use of the existing infrastructure for
transport to and from the hinterland. In doing
so, the Port is moving away from road transport
toward more sustainable modes of transport –
namely barging, short-sea shipping and rail transport.
In 2006, various services to the hinterland
by inland waterway and rail were made more
frequent and were expanded. On top of that,
AMSbarge was launched: in the northern part
of the Randstad area, a barge sails between the
Port of Amsterdam and companies located along
canals/rivers to pick up and deliver containers.
Finally, Port of Amsterdam, together with the
Port of Rotterdam and ProRail (responsible for
the Dutch rail infrastructure) took a 15% stake
(to a maximum of EUR 3 million) in Keyrail – the
company set up in 2006 to operate the Betuwe
Line, which is a dedicated rail line for goods
transport to the German Border.
Sustainability
In 2006, the Port of Amsterdam launched many
projects to promote sustainable development.
After all, the Port can only remain a cornerstone
of the regional economy, if it operates in a socially
responsible and environmentally friendly fashion.
The Port of Amsterdam takes a sustainable approach
to land use; the transport of people and goods;
fuel consumption; air quality; (the prevention of)
soil contamination; as well as job creation for a
diversified workforce. One example of sustainable
development is the creation of a large wind farm
in the port area. Further to that, Greenmills will
recycle organic waste flows to produce bio-fuels.
Also, Harvest Energy concluded a contract for the
construction of a bio-ethanol plant in the port area
(also see page 40).