Port Of Antwerp International News

The Antwerp port community and its various partners are currently on a trade mission to West-Africa, including Benin and Nigeria.A collaboration agreement was signed between Port of Antwerp International (PAI), the consultancy and investment subsidiary of Port of Antwerp, and APEC, its maritime training center, and Nigerian Ports Authority, which manages the 6 ports of Nigeria. This collaboration, which will mainly take the form of training and consulting, underlines the leading role that the port of Antwerp plays in West Africa.The port of Antwerp is known in Africa as the maritime center of Europe, thanks to the numerous supply chain connections. The synergy between maritime, logistics and industrial activities creates a unique platform.

As BBC Amethyst anchored in Porto do Açu, Brazil, she becomes the first vessel to make the big crossing from Antwerp to the Brazilian sea port."Quite an achievement for Port of Antwerp International and the local partners who invested in the Brazilian port, thereby promoting trade with Antwerp. Brazil, the biggest economy of Latin America and number 7 in the world, is a key trading partner for the Port of Antwerp," said a press release from the Europe’s second-largest seaport.A Siemens gas turbine, an essential component of the new thermoelectric power plant of GNA - Gás Natural Açu Ltda, which is a joint venture among Prumo (parent holding company Porto do Açu)…

A collaboration agreement was signed on Thursday 24 May, in the port of Antwerp between on the one side Port of Antwerp International (PAI), the consultancy and investment subsidiary of Antwerp Port Authority, and APEC, its maritime training centre, and on the other Gambia Ports Authority which manages the port of Banjul in The Gambia. The collaboration, which will mainly take the form of training and consulting, underlines the leading role that the port of Antwerp plays in West Africa. As part of a visit to Belgium the delegation from The Gambia headed by H.E. President Adama Barrow today also called at the port of Antwerp. After a guided tour of the port the programme continued with signature of the collaboration agreement between the ports of Antwerp and Banjul.

The ports of Antwerp and Douala in Cameroon are to collaborate closely with each other over the next five years. The collaboration agreement was signed on Wednesday this week during an extensive visit by Antwerp port representatives to the port of Douala in Cameroon. Douala port authority  is counting on the Antwerp know-how in order to boost the efficiency of its port operations, among other things. For Antwerp the agreement represents a way to maintain and further strengthen its position as market leader in West and Central Africa. The Memorandum of Understanding was signed by Cyrus Ngo’o, CEO of the Port Autonome de Douala,and by Marc Van Peel and Kristof Waterschoot…

Port of Antwerp International (PAI), the consultancy and investment subsidiary of Antwerp Port Authority, has been appointed by the Council of Ministers of the West African country of Benin to modernise the port of Cotonou. This port is the economic heart of Benin, handling an annual freight volume of around 12 million tonnes. In the longer term, the port authority wants the port to grow further, but both the infrastructure and the organization are outdated. The government therefore decided to temporarily outsource the management of the port. “We are delighted that the Benin government has opted for the expertise and knowhow of Antwerp,” says port alderman Marc Van Peel, who is also chairman of PAI.

The port of Antwerp and the port of San Pedro in Côte d’Ivoire are to collaborate over the next few years to manage further expansion of this West African entrepot. San Pedro, the leading cacao port in the world, aims to develop at regional level so as to become a logistics hotspot for handling commodities such as fertilisers, cashew nuts and cacao, among other things. Part of the capital cost will be financed by Port of Antwerp International (PAI), the consultancy and investment subsidiary of Antwerp Port Authority. While PAI has already been active in West Africa for many years now, this will be the first time it has made a financial investment in the region. Already in 2011 the ports of San Pedro and Antwerp signed an agreement for collaboration between them.

The Iranian shipping company Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) called at the port of Antwerp with one of its ships this week, for the first time since economic sanctions were lifted. The honour of being the “first” Iranian ship in Antwerp’s waters fell to the container carrier Azargoun which moored at the Antwerp Gateway terminal in the Deurganck dock. A deputation of representatives from the Port Authority, the ship’s agent PWL and the terminal operator went on board to welcome the ship’s master and crew. Up until 2010 Antwerp was the main European port destination for Iranian cargo. Now that sanctions against Iran have been lifted, the Port Authority is eager to restore economic relations with that country.

The Indonesian government has ambitious plans for major infrastructure projects in the near future in order to give a massive boost to the country’s economy, already the largest in South-East Asia. Its shopping list includes among other things the construction of dozens of ports to serve the country’s almost 14,000 islands. To achieve this the Indonesian government is looking abroad for international expertise from among others Antwerp, the second-largest port in Europe. During the foreign trade mission headed by Princess Astrid of Belgium, Port Authority chairman Marc Van Peel signed two framework agreements with IPC Corporate University, a subsidiary of the Indonesian Port Corporation (IPC), one of the country’s four national port authorities.

True to its annual tradition the port of Antwerp is organizing a trade mission to India in February this year. Port Authority chairman Marc Van Peel will be accompanied on his visit to Delhi and Mumbai by Pieter De Crem, the Belgian secretary of state for Foreign Trade. The agenda includes among other things the annual Port of Antwerp reception, the presentation of an award to the Indian forwarders’ association and the opening of a new course offered by JNPT APEC Port Training Centre that was set up in Mumbai last year in close collaboration with APEC, the Antwerp training centre for maritime professionals. The port of Antwerp has been investing for several years now in strengthening collaboration with the Indian business world and local authorities.

A few months ago the Essar Group from India decided to buy back the shares from her daughter company Essar Ports Limited (EPL). Port of Antwerp International (PAI), the international consulting and investment subsidiary of Antwerp Port Authority, set up an alliance in 2012 with EPL, which was accompanied by an investment of 25 million euros, five million of which was contributed by the Flemish Regional Investment Company (FRIC). PAI and FRIC have come out of the existing financial arrangement with a capital gain of 6.8 million euros on top of their original investment, which has been recovered in full. In the meantime the collaboration with EPL will continue unabated in other areas.

A delegation from the port of Antwerp headed by port alderman and Port Authority chairman Marc Van Peel paid a visit to Iran last week. The delegation which was made up of petrochemical and shipping experts met in Tehran with various ministries, petrochemical organisations and private companies. With this mission Antwerp Port Authority seeks to open the doors of Iran for the Antwerp port community once more. The exploratory mission was mainly aimed at making contacts with official bodies. It included meetings with among others Mr. Saeednejad, head of the Ports and Maritime Organization, Dr. Saeidi, head of the Islamic Republic Shipping Line, Mr. Masoud Karbasian, head of the Iranian Customs service and Mr. Seyed Jamal Hosseini, vice-chairman of the Iranian Investment Organisation.

The port of Baku on the Black Sea is Azerbaijan’s largest port. Now to support its further development it is calling on the know-how and expertise of the port of Antwerp. For this purpose the management of Baku International Sea Trade Port recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding with two subsidiaries of Antwerp Port Authority, namely Port of Antwerp International (PAI) and Antwerp Port Training Centre (APEC), for them to provide consultancy and training. The co-signatories on the Antwerp side were Jan Blomme and Paul Verkoyen, the respective CEOs of PAI and APEC. “This agreement is the direct result of a visit to Antwerp in May this year by the Director-General of the port of Baku, Taleh Ziyadov,” explained Jan Blomme.

“One Belt, One Road” is a Chinese development strategy launched at the end of 2013 that focuses on connectivity and cooperation among countries primarily in Eurasia. The strategy has two main components, namely the land-based “Silk Road Economic Belt” and the ocean-going “Maritime Silk Road.” Antwerp has a potentially very important role to play in both these routes as a major trading hub, and so the Port Authority is setting up a special taskforce for this purpose. The importance of this project for Europe can hardly be underestimated, and so during the recent state visit to China by king Philippe of Belgium the country applied to join the new Asian Infrastructure Development Bank, the investment bank behind the strategy.

Port of Antwerp International (PAI), the international consulting and investment subsidiary of the port of Antwerp, and APEC, maritime training and education, conduct their activities in India strongly. Recently, under the impetus of the Indian Ministry of Shipping, signed an agreement with the Indian Ports Association PAI gives the order to develop the major Indian ports, called major ports, jointly audit and a joint optimization project. In connection with the execution of this contract there are two teams of PAI in India to screen the ports of Kandla and Paradip. APEC and the Indian Ministry of Shipping decided early this year, along with Jawaharal Nehru Port Trust -the largest container port in India- a common training center being shod at the last APEC.

The port of Antwerp has planned a Roadshow in India as this country has generated a record 5 million tonnes of cargo in Antwerp in 2014. The roadshow has been programmed from 9 to 13 February 2015. With an annual freight volume of 199 million tonnes the port of Antwerp is the second-largest in Europe. Its central location in the heart of Europe makes it possible to serve a huge consumer market very quickly: an essential advantage for exporting countries that target the European consumer. To help convince such countries of the unique position occupied by Antwerp in the European port landscape, the Antwerp port community regularly organises missions abroad. The port of Antwerp has long been convinced of the economic growth potential of India.

Ivory Coast's port of San Pedro is seeking 777 billion CFA francs ($1.65 billion) from private partners to fund upgrades that aim to make it one of West Africa's top shipping hubs, including for iron ore and nickel, the transport minister said. San Pedro is already the world's leading port for cocoa exports, shipping more than half of total output from Ivory Coast, the top producer of the chocolate ingredient. It also exports coffee, palm oil, timber and cotton. But the government of President Alassane Ouattara wants to make the port the centrepiece of an ambitious plan that would see more than 8 trillion CFA francs invested in the development of the country's predominantly agricultural western regions.

India's Essar Ports announces a long-term strategic alliance with Port of Antwerp International ("PAI") and an investment of approx. PAI is the international investing arm of the Antwerp Port Authority, which is the port authority of the port of Antwerp, the 2nd largest port in Europe handling 187 MMT of cargo in 2011, and a gateway to many European economies. •    Port of Antwerp International has invested approx. The Antwerp Port Authority and Essar Ports will collaborate in the areas of training and consultancy services, port planning, traffic flow, quality and productivity improvement and will further build a mutually beneficial commercial relationship based on mutual business and investment preferences.