Big increases in 2006 volumes

At Antwerp, a total of 167,372,296 tonnes of cargo were handled in 2006, an increase of 4.6% compared with the 160m tonnes handled in 2005. Container volumes grew twice as fast as the general total, increasing by 500,000 teu or 8.2% to reach 7,018,799 teu. Container trade with other European countries and with North America grew particularly strongly, as did imports from the Far East. The new Deurganck dock handled a total of 810,000 teu.

Total cargo handled at Hamburg increased by 7.3% to set a new record of 135m tonnes. Container traffic was once again the main driver of growth, with a total of 8.8m teu (89.5m tonnes) representing an increase of 9.6% year-on-year. Growth was the strongest for any of the major northern European ports (Antwerp, Rotterdam, Bremen), where the average increase was 8.6% for containers and 4.7% for total cargo volumes. Hamburg added 774,000 teu to its 2005 figure to surpass both these levels and increase its market share.

At Marseilles-Fos, total cargo throughput surpassed 100m tonnes for the first time since 1980, hitting 100.7m tonnes, a year-on-year increase of 3.6%. Fos container terminal led the way, recording a 6.8% increase in box volumes to 646,171 teu and tonnage growth of 8.9%. The port’s total container throughput was 941,400 teu, 3.9% more than in 2005. It expects to pass the million mark in 2007.