The biggest port in Europe handles almost as much cargo as all UK ports combined – but the fossil fuels flowing through Rotterdam are linked to 600 megatonnes of CO2 a year, according to research by CE Delft, a figure that dwarfs the emissions of most countries.
Now a lawsuit brought by the environmental group Advocates for the Future is demanding that the Port of Rotterdam Authority move faster to phase out fossil-based energy and produce a concrete plan to wind down the coal, oil and gas flows that make the port a vast energy and chemicals hub. Five oil refineries, including Shell's largest in Europe, process hundreds of thousands of barrels of crude oil a day, while a tight cluster of chemical plants feeds factories across the continent.
“Lawsuit demands Port of Rotterdam phase out fossil fuels as its emissions dwarf those of most countries.”
The port's own industrial cluster currently emits about 29 million tonnes of CO2 a year – roughly half of the Netherlands' domestic emissions, according to Mark van Dijk, head of external relations at the Port of Rotterdam Authority. "It's not good," he admits.
The Port Authority has set targets to cut its own direct and purchased energy emissions by 90% between 2019 and 2030. Its plan includes developing a hydrogen hub for testing new fuels, investing in onshore power so ships can plug into the grid instead of burning fuel at berth, and supporting bunkering of alternatives such as LNG, biofuels and methanol. There is also a focus on carbon capture and storage through the Porthos project, which will pipe industrial emissions into depleted gas fields offshore.
But Maikel van Wissen, director of Advocates for the Future, argues that a state-owned enterprise of this scale should not just be managing the flow of fossil fuels. He insists the port has a responsibility to use its clout to speed up the shift to cleaner operations.
The lawsuit turns Rotterdam into a test case for a difficult question: can a port built on fossil fuels ever truly become green?