Rotterdam: Europe's Largest Port

How Rotterdam became Europe's largest port, its role as a gateway to Germany via the Rhine, automated terminals, and its energy and petrochemical hub.

Rotterdam is Europe’s largest port.

Location

At the mouth of the Rhine and Maas rivers, it links the sea to Germany and central Europe.

Scale

It handles hundreds of millions of tonnes of cargo a year.

Maasvlakte 2

Land reclaimed from the sea, opened in 2013, hosts automated container terminals.

Energy hub

Oil refineries and petrochemicals.
Plans for hydrogen imports.

Rotterdam effect

Goods entering the EU through Rotterdam are counted as Dutch imports and exports, inflating trade figures.

Economics

Ports create clusters of logistics and industry.

The automated terminal

At Maasvlakte 2, driverless vehicles move containers from ship to stack with few workers on site.

Thinking all goods in Dutch trade figures are Dutch

Many are just passing through.

Key takeaways

Rotterdam is Europe's largest port.
The Rhine links it to Germany.
Maasvlakte 2 has automated terminals.
It's an energy hub.