Port behind 10% of Belgium's CO₂ emissions pioneers carbon-slashing tech, aiming at net zero by 2050

A carbon footprint heavyweight, Antwerp-Bruges aims to reinvent itself as the world's most sustainable port.  Emerging tech can make it possible.

Ports are the heart of our global trade, connecting the world and fuelling economic growth. But with this power comes a problem: ports have a massive carbon footprint.

Even prior to its recent merger with the port of Antwerp, Zeebrugge in Belgium held the title of the world's top car handling port. The large ships that dock here generate their electricity by burning fuel. But in the near future, these ships will be able to connect to clean energy from numerous new wind turbines — a more sustainable solution, perfect for the windiest area of Belgium.

"The first wind turbines ever in Europe were located here in Zeebrugge," says Dries De Smet, Sustainable Energy Advisor, Port of Antwerp-Bruges. "So we have always been a pioneer on that side. These 54 wind turbines, they supply 100,000 of households with green energy. Of course, a lot of this energy gets consumed by the terminals and the companies directly, which makes sure that they can perform actually a lot of their activities without emitting CO₂."

The merged port of Antwerp and Bruges — one of the largest in Europe — has the ambition to become one of the most sustainable ports in the world.

The Antwerp Euroterminal (AET) switched to LED lights, covers roofs with solar panels, and washes containers and cars with collected rainwater — all that in addition to the wind power.

The wind in Antwerp isn't very consistent and the sun doesn't always shine, but the terminal copes with that by using new battery storage — a part of the PIONEERS project backed by the European Union. The managing director Yves De Larivière says the terminal now