Cargill and Rubis Terminals have signed a lease agreement with the Port of Rotterdam Authority for the expansion of their site by 2.8 and 4.4 hectares respectively. The site, on Welplaatweg, is currently leased by their joint ‘neighbour’ Evonik. This company will have ceased all operations by the end of 2012 and will hand over the (cleaned-up) site afterwards. That will be in 2013.
In addition to the site expansion, agreement was also reached on deepening Cargill’s sea jetty by 3.5 metres to -/- 15.20 metres NAP (New Amsterdam Water Level). This is possible by moving various mooring facilities ‘outside’. This project will be completed in the final quarter of 2012. For the time being, Rubis is looking into expanding its jetty capacity for both ocean and inland shipping.
Intensification
The Botlek area, built in the 1950s, is virtually full. It is becoming more cramped on the water too, due to the increased size of ocean-going ships and inland vessels. At the same time, the Port Authority wants to facilitate economic growth by creating more handling capacity. It is therefore continually redeveloping and investing through and in:
– re-allocation following business discontinuation as now with the Evonik site, also (earlier) to neighbour Rubis that replaced HRT/Matrans (?), BTT tank storage in place of dry bulk silos, etc.
– construction of space-saving quays such as for Odfjell, and the filling in of ports, such as for BTT.
– filling up open (option) sites, such as now by Bertschi and EBS, for example.
– modification of the infrastructure, such as laying and rerouting pipelines, roads and railway lines.
Companies
Since the takeover of the refinery of margarine manufacturer Brinkers in 1984, Cargill has been operating from the Botlek. The plant refines, fractionates and hardens tropical vegetable oils. Since the start, production capacity has been increased sevenfold to over a million tonnes. At the expansion location, Cargill plans the gradual expansion of the current refinery (product expansion). The proposed investments will also lead to greater cost efficiency.
Rubis Terminal Rotterdam is part of the French Rubis Terminal, the largest independent tank storage company in France. The terminal in Rotterdam has been operating since 2008 and stores both chemical and oil products. The expansion on the Evonik site will enable Rubis to almost double its storage capacity to a total capacity of 350,000 m3.
[mappress]
Dredging Today Staff, December 22, 2011; Image: portofrotterdam