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Europe’s largest port is preparing for a potential conflict with Russia by making space for ships carrying military goods and planning locations where cargo will be diverted in the event of a war breaks out.
Boudewijn Siemons, chief executive of the Rotterdam Authority Port, said he is coordinating with neighbor Antwerp on how to manage whether vehicles and supplies from the UK, US and Canada have arrived.
“Not all terminals are suitable for handling military cargo,” he told the Financial Times in an interview. “If we need to ship a large amount of military supplies, we turn to Antwerp or other ports to take over some kind of ability, and we look less and less of each other as competitors.
Rotterdam’s measures are part of a wave of war preparations across the continent. The EU is creating a re-arming plan of up to 800 million euros to become self-sufficient upon demands from President Donald Trump and seeks to stop the Russian invasion, where Ukraine’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine shines in its fourth year.
The Netherlands, together with NATO allies, have pledged to promote defensive spending to 5% of GDP. In May, the Dutch Ministry of Defense announced that Rotterdam must provide space for handling multiple ships carrying military cargo at the request of NATO.
Siemons said one or more ships docked to the quay four to five times a year for several weeks, but the location could change. The container terminal in Rotterdam is the only place where a harbor can safely move ammunition from one ship to another.
Additionally, there are several amphibious military exercises each year.
The port had previously disposed of arms and had surged during the Gulf War in 2003, but even at the height of the Cold War there were no dedicated quays.
Antwerp regularly receives supplies for the US troops stationed in Europe.
NATO Executive Director Mark Latte warned members of the alliance in June that Russia could attack one of them by 2030.
Rotterdam is sprawled 42km along the River Meuse in the Netherlands. It handles approximately 436 million tonnes of cargo each year, and receives 28,000 and 91,000 ships by sea from the deepwaters of Germany and Europe.
After the EU imposed sanctions on Russia, the port lost about 8% of its oil, primarily.
Antwerp handles 240 mn tons of cargo each year, making it the second largest port in the EU.
The Seamonds said the two ports are also working together to improve Europe’s self-sufficiency. “Our teams are increasingly collaborating on many topics, including resilience.”
The COVID-19 pandemic, in which European countries took over protective devices and drugs, has exposed its dependence on several suppliers, including China and India.
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The sharp decline in Russian oil flow following the invasion of Ukraine was another lesson, Siemons said.
He called for European countries to stockpile more important supplies, just like oil. The EU mandated that after the 1973 oil shock, members maintained a 90-day strategic supply and when Arab countries squeezed production to put pressure on the West during conflict with Israel.
“We should do the same with copper, lithium, graphite, and many of these important raw materials,” Seamonds said.
“We put it in oil and we don’t have it for gas yet. And of course, Europe has some gas fields that can respond to it, but where do we accumulate, seeing the broad strategic resilience of medicines?
He said the area around the port with excellent distribution networks is suitable for such stockpiling. Part of the Netherlands’ strategic oil reserve is located in Rotterdam.
The EU is scheduled to announce a “stockpile strategy” on Tuesday that covers medical supplies, critical raw materials, energy equipment, shelters and potential food and water.
