b'The Port of Rotterdam is highly de- Hecitedtheportspowerplants,have to invest [as a port] in this infra-pendentonpetroleum-relatedbusi- which are connected to the high-volt- structure. but we have to do this with ness.Itformsthefoundationoftheagepowergridthroughonsitetrans- our partners.ports industrial core. Supertankers un- formers. New transformers linked to the load crude at Rotterdam terminals. Fivegrid will also be installed for use by theIn wind alone, this reflects increased refineries operate within the port com- wind farms. demandformarshalingfacilitiesas plex, including the Shell refinery, whichmore and more developers seek to har-is Europes largest. Add to that anotherThe Port of Amsterdam also relies onness the North Sea energy. Part of this nine tank terminals for oil products andfossil fuel as a revenue source. Its theinvolvesancillaryoperationssuchas pipelines connecting the crude to otherworlds largest gasoline port. Aviationcables production and storage. Part of industrial sites in the south of the Neth- fuel is piped from the port to Schipholthis involves production and assembly erlandsandtorefineriesinGermanyAirport, 15 miles away.of the components themselves. and Belgium, plus 28 chemical manu- Rather than turn its back on these re- Spaceisonebigconstraint.Mar-facturers. fineriesandgasolinetransporters,theshaling yards must be large enough to Portauthorityofficialsrecognizeport should work with them to developaccommodatemassivewindturbine this dilemma. Oil and oil products isandpromoteagreenerfuture,Bren- components. And because these com-quite a big commodity, said Steven Janninkmeijer believes. She cited as oneponents are so large, its becoming in-van Hengel, senior business manager,example the development of bio-kero- creasingly necessary to construct or as-shippers and forwarders, at the Port ofsene as a synthetic jet fuel.semble onsite. The port of Amsterdam, Rotterdam. However, he added, that isfor example, has reserved 35 hectares changing and evolving now, with theThey have the knowledge, the ex- forwind-relatedproductioncompa-Paris Climate Agreement and the ener- pertise and the people equipped for thenies.gy transition were in. So, thats a big,new future fuels, said Brenninkmeijer.big challenge, He addressed a groupWind farm operators demand precise The ports see a role for themselvestimetablesforconstruction;thepur-ofjournalistshostedbyNetherlandsas well in moving ships and shippingpose-built vessels necessary are huge-Foreign Investment Agency. towardenvironmentalresponsibili- ly expensive. So, to insure exclusivity, Rotterdam is very much a fossil-ori- ty. One question the industry is beingeven more space is necessary.ented port. Thats where weve seen ourasked:Howdowegetthecurrent biggestgrowthinthelastdecades,maritimeindustrychangedtowhatsThen,theresthemaintenanceof added Eenhuizen. The port area itselfmoresustainable?explainedBren- thesefarmswhenoperating.And, accounts for a large share of the emis- ninkmeijer.Theportscanacceleratetheresthedecommissioninganddis-sions in the Netherlands. this transition. mantling of oil rigs and demobilizing of older generation wind turbines, which The ports response, Eenhuizen said,As ports turn more of their attentionwill be shipped elsewhere in the world.isnttoimmediatelyjettisonexistingto offshore wind and other renewable business, but to welcome new businessenergy-related business, it would seemThe whole system is going to change. Its an and, and strategy, in which wetoresultinoverheatedcompetition.The production of energy will be close, slowly move from one industry towardNot so, said Brenninkmeijer. We cantin the North Sea, said Brenninkmeijer. the other, not in a single day, not in ado this alone, so we have to work withHowever, she added, it will take some singleyear,butsomethingthatwillall the other ports to meet the challeng- time, with planners looking at 2030 to happen over time.es, she said. The complexities are so2050 for this transformation.big, the investments needed nationally This will eventually result in a neware so big that you cannot build alone. Weshouldntlookatthisasone business model, Eenhuizen said, that isplayer who profits from this, Brennink-sustainable and centered on renewables.Payingforthistransformationisntmeijer concluded. In the end, we will easy, either. One of the big dilemmasallprofitfromthis. TheNetherlands is about changing the infrastructure forwill profit from this.the future, said Brenninkmeijer. We 54 THE UNCONTAINED www.theuncontained.com'