The Port of Antwerp-Bruges handled 210.5 million tonnes of cargo in the first nine months of 2024, up 3% year-on-year. This indicates a stabilisation in cargo volumes compared to the second quarter. Container transport remains the main growth driver, despite ongoing geopolitical and economic instability that affects other types of cargo. The port continues to invest in innovative and sustainable projects, supporting the energy transition and industrial growth.
Container throughput in tonnes increased by 8.9%, while the number of containers (TEU) increased by 6.8%, reaching 10.152 million TEU. The port also strengthened its position in container traffic in the Hamburg-Le Havre region, increasing its market share to 30.7%. Around 10% of all containers are refrigerated containers transporting food, pharmaceuticals and chemicals. In this segment, refrigerated cargo turnover increased by 9.7%.
Despite growth in some segments, the volume of ro-ro cargo decreased by 5.5%, while the total volume of dry cargo fell by 1.4%. The main factors were the sharp decline in coal (-55.3%) and car (-11.4%). However, other categories such as fertilizers (+30.6%) and chemicals (+9.3%) showed positive dynamics.
The passenger traffic in the cruise segment increased significantly: the port of Zeebrugge received 412,774 passengers on 143 cruise ships, which is 17.5% more than last year.