The port on the left bank of the Scheldt and strengthening support for the port is one of the tasks of Maatschappij Linkerscheldeoever (MLSO). That is the reason why, at the end of 2021, the Executive Board decided to release an annual budget of 2.5 million euros to finance (or co-finance) social projects linked to the sustainable development of the port on the left bank of the Scheldt. In 2022, the first year of operation of this grant, the first seven projects selected received a total of 2.1 million euros in financial support from MLSO.
"Without support for the port, MLSO cannot develop the port area. Yet this is much needed, as the demand for business concession sites continues to be strong. Before we can work on that, however, the port's wasteland must have their environmental protections removed. Together with Port of Antwerp-Bruges, we are working hard to find a solution to free up this so-called "residual land" by creating foraging areas for the Western marsh harrier elsewhere. The proceeds from those new concessions are distributed by MLSO as dividends and are also used for community projects and partnerships around the port on the left bank of the Scheldt. This is a great example of how MLSO is committed to the port on the left bank of the Scheldt, its businesses and its neighbours." - Boudewijn Vlegels, Chairperson of MLSO.
The nature offsets above form part of the Left Bank Alliance concluded in the spring of 2022, in which attention is paid to port development, housing, agriculture, nature and heritage on the Left Bank of the Scheldt.
In addition, MLSO invested heavily last year in protecting and strengthening the nature and biodiversity present in the port on the left bank of the Scheldt. In the spring, a groundwater retaining screen was installed in the area where the extremely rare fen orchid grows. The first preliminary measurement results in the field already show a positive evolution. Furthermore, the first steps were taken in the development of 29.5 hectares of nature-friendly buffers in the Waasland Logistics Park.
For the first time, more than 22,000 full-time equivalents (FTEs) are directly employed in the port on the left bank of the Scheldt. As a result, the employment figure increased by as much as 4.14%. An increase of that level has not been achieved since 2018 and it confirms the fundamental increase in employment in the port on the left bank of the Scheldt in recent years. The sharp increase in the number of agency workers (+786 FTEs) is the main cause of this increase in employment figures. But that means that this increase is also precarious at the same time – the number of agency workers is typically related to the developments in the economy and is also a sign indicating that employers are more cautious about hiring new employees on a permanent basis.
In 2022, the series of figures depicting growth that the port on the left bank of the Scheldt was able to present in terms of maritime freight traffic came to an end. Maritime traffic decreased by 9%, thereby falling more sharply than the Port of Antwerp-Bruges, which recorded a drop of 0.7%. A total of just under 109 million tons of goods were handled.
"By far the majority of goods in the port on the left bank of the Scheldt were unloaded and loaded via containers (84%). With a 63% share of container traffic in the port of Antwerp-Zeebrugge, the port on the left bank of the Scheldt is strengthening its role in the container traffic being handled within the merged port. These figures also show that the realisation of additional container handling capacity is an absolute must. It is therefore quite logical that, to achieve an expansion in container quays and terminals, eyes are turning to the port on the left bank of the Scheldt, as envisaged in the complex project ECA." - Boudewijn Vlegels, Chairperson of MLSO.
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