The Smartest Port in the World
A genuine gateway into Europe, today Rotterdam is focusing on sustainability and innovation
Photo by Alessandro Gandolfi
Throughout the twentieth century Rotterdam was the world’s busiest port. While that title moved to China in 2004, today there is another goal – to become the smartest seaport in the world. This project entails digitalization, sustainable transport and a decisive step forward in the energy transition (concerning hydrogen), not to mention a fully-fledged CO2 abatement program in view of the fact that the port currently generates 14 million tonnes of it each year.
This vast footprint is also a reflection of the port’s remarkable growth over the centuries, its success being partly due to its geographical position: Rotterdam’s canals provide a gateway to an internal European market of 350 million people. The port of the future, however, can be summarized primarily in one word: innovation.
In recent years the site has become a vast campus where brilliant minds work developing visionary ideas: from floating wind turbines to new corrosion-resistant alloys, aquatic vacuum cleaners to the latest generation drones, which are set to be introduced in 2024.
