15 January 2018

The 15 most important commercial ports in Europe

Commercial ports are key infrastructures for the development of a territory. They provide a gateway to the world for the delivery and reception of a wide variety of merchandise, contributing to the wealth and commercial activity of the territory. Europe is one of the regions with the highest port density in the world. It has about 1,200 commercial ports and some of them, the largest in container traffic.

The 15 largest commercial ports in Europe are the following:

Commercial ports with the largest merchandise volume in Europe:

The importance of a port is determined by several factors. The most outstanding are the strategic situation, its size and volume of goods moved, the agility in loading and unloading merchandise or the fiscal policy of the country, among others.

Below we detail the characteristics of the 15 most important commercial ports in terms of their merchandise traffic.

1) PORT OF ROTTERDAM, NETHERLANDS
Due to its strategic location as well as its size, the port of Rotterdam is the most important port in Europe, with container traffic of more than 12.2 million TEU.

2) PORT OF AMBERES, BELGIUM
Located in the great river Scheldt, it is an inner port connected with an important infrastructure network by road, rail and river transport. As a curiosity, it was commissioned by Napoleon in 1811. It currently has a volume of 8.8 million TEU.

3) PORT OF HAMBURGO, GERMANY
On the banks of the river Elbe, the port of Hamburg, in Germany is known as the gateway to the world of Germany. It is one of the largest in the world due to its high volume of container handling: about 9.6 million TEU.

4) PORT OF ALGECIRAS, SPAIN
The port of Algeciras is one of the largest commercial ports in the Mediterranean. Its strategic location, in the Strait of Gibraltar, allows the exchange of merchandise with the rest of the world. In 2015, it moved about 4.5 million TEU. In addition, the port of Algeciras is one of the fastest growing in terms of container traffic.

5) PORT OF MARSELLA, FRANCE
In the south of France, the port of Marseille has a great historical relevance, constituting a city of passage for many international vessels. It is currently the center of industrial activity specializing in petrochemicals.

6) PORT OF BREMEN-BREMENHAVEN, GERMANY
The ports of Bremen and Bremerhaven in Germany moved a total of 5.5 million TEU during 2015, highlighting the import / export of vehicles.

This is one of the two ports that exist in this city, the other, the port of Bremerhaven. Both serve the industrial center of the city.

7) PORT OF VALENCIA, SPAIN
The port of Valencia is the port of the Mediterranean with the highest freight traffic in container traffic. In 2015, it moved some 4.6 million TEUs.

8) PORT OF LE HAVRE, FRANCE
It is the second most important French port, favored by its literal situation. In 2015 it moves 2.6 million TEU.

9) PORT OF GENOVA, ITALY
The port of Genoa stretches along 22 kilometers along the Italian coast, being one of the most important ports in the Mediterranean. With more than 20 terminals, the port of Genoa moves around 2.2 million TEU.

10) PORT OF DUNKERQUE, FRANCE
The port Dunkirk is the third French port by size and volume, dedicated to its numerous industrial facilities. The Dunkerque port stands out for its import of fruit in containers.

11) PORT OF BARCELONA, SPAIN
The port of Barcelona, known as Mare Nostrum: In 2015 moved a total of 45.92 Mt. It is also important in terms of the transport of people on cruises.

12) PORT OF AARHUS, DENMARK
The port of Aarhus has seen great advances in recent years, especially in industrial development. It stands out for the export of agricultural products and the importation of minerals such as coal or iron.

13) PORT OF CAGLIARI, ITALY
The port of Cagliari is the largest Italian port and one of the most important in the Mediterranean.

14) PORT OF FELIXSTOWE, UNITED KINGDOM
The port of Felixstone, in the east of the United Kingdom, moves about 3.9 million TEU.

15) PORT OF SOUTHAMPTON, UNITED KINGDOM
At south of the United Kingdom, the port of Southampton has a container traffic of 2.1 million TEU.