Port of Rotterdam to expand with new offshore center

The Port of Rotterdam has unveiled plans for building an offshore center for decommissioning of oil and gas platforms, the oil and gas market, and wind energy at sea.

The port said last week that the new center would be built on a site of up to 70 hectares using the hydraulic filling technique on Maasvlakte 2 in the Prinses Alexiahaven.

The Port Authority expects the first companies to move in within two years.

Allard Castelein, CEO of the Port Authority, said: “The creation of wind farms at sea is a huge growth market. This requires a specialized port area for the installation and maintenance of the farms, which we would like to provide. This is consistent with our efforts to be the offshore hub of Europe and play a leading role in the energy transition.”

The Port Authority believes that the establishment of the center, right next to the sea on deepwater, would allow several activities to be clustered and that businesses would benefit from each other’s presence.

Offshore Center Maasvlakte 2 (OCMV2) will be located in Princess Alexiahaven against the seawall, near the berth of the Pioneering Spirit. It will be a center where businesses work together in the decommissioning, oil and gas, and offshore wind markets with activities such as construction, assembly, heavy lift, logistics, mobilizations, and demobilizations.

The Port Authority added that it would reclaim the first 30 hectares and install a heavy load deep sea quay, initially of 600 meters, with the necessary infrastructure as soon as possible.

According to the Port’s plan, the first businesses would become operational on OCMV2 in the course of 2019. The center could potentially be extended by a further 40 hectares and 1,000 meters of quay wall.