Can the Bevrijdingsdok be a fully-fledged alternative to a second container dock on the Left Bank? In my opinion, the answer is no, but that does not alter the fact that that location certainly still has a future for container handling.
Fernand Huts, top executive of Katoen Natie, packed out a press release last week saying that the Second Tidal Dock on the Left Bank is actually not needed if the Bevrijdingsdok is refurbished as an alternative large container dock accessible for ships up to 16,000 teu.
The former MSC Home Terminal (Kaai 730) on the then Delwaide dock was once the ‘hotspot’ of Antwerp container traffic. Ships up to 16,650 teu were transshipped via the Berendrecht lock to unload and load large volumes in the current Bevrijdingsdok.
Valuable assets
The proximity of the Scheldt-Rhine connection and the rail hub remain valid assets, and when all river terminals are full, a lock passage need not be an insurmountable obstacle. MSC had a 15,000 teu ship pass through the Berendrecht lock in December 2021 (pictured) to unload at the Churchilldok, although that was not exactly a dream scenario for the Swiss shipping company right now.
Still, Huts’ plans do not seem realistic. The big carriers prefer to combine their east-west traffic, their north-south traffic and regional feeders at one big terminal, which then also has to accommodate their alliance partners.
In Antwerp, this led to the current situation where MSC has its traffic and that of 2M handled at the Deurganckdok and Ocean Alliance members are Antwerp Gateway’s biggest customers. THE Alliance members have their vessels handled at PSA’s right bank container quays.
Niche traffic
We should also not forget that Bevrijdingsdok still has container facilities. The main customers of Sea-invests Antwerp Container Terminal (ACOT) are (or were) not coincidentally niche carriers like Independent Container Lines (ICL) or NileDutch that are not alliance members.
A container future for the Liberation Dock is therefore mainly situated in that niche traffic. For instance, it is a perfect location to attract shortsea traffic, just as Rotterdam has a specific terminal for that purpose.
Container ships of 2,500 teu also still go to fruit terminals to unload reefer containers. These will one day be replaced by larger units of 5,000 or 7,800 teu, which can no longer go to Belgian New Fruit Wharf.
If Huts believes in a future of the Bevrijdingsdok as a container dock, nothing prevents him from investing in new gantry cranes for the former Mexico Nation concession now and looking for customers.
