Flemish and Dutch ports welcome Ports Summit declaration on ARRRA priorities
- The Ports Summit final declaration (5 October 2026) endorses the strategic importance of the Antwerp‑Rotterdam‑Rhine‑Ruhr Area (ARRRA).
- The participating Flemish and Dutch ports, together with Duisburg and Cologne, represent about €65 billion in added value and nearly 600,000 jobs.
- Three clear priorities were reflected: a level playing field, improved cross‑border energy infrastructure, and faster permit granting via ‘fast‑track zones’.
- The declaration also backs ARRRA as an acceleration zone and strengthened cooperation on hydrogen, CO₂ infrastructure (CCS), the circular economy, sustainable shipping and innovation.
Summit endorsement
The ports of North Sea Port, Antwerp‑Bruges, Rotterdam, Ostend and Moerdijk welcomed the final declaration of the Ports Summit held on 5 October 2026 in Meise, which endorsed the strategic importance of the Antwerp‑Rotterdam‑Rhine‑Ruhr Area (ARRRA).
Economic scale
Alongside the German ports of Duisburg and Cologne, the Flemish and Dutch ports involved represent an added value of approximately €65 billion and nearly 600,000 jobs.
Three priorities
The ports’ June 2026 letter to the prime ministers set out three priorities that appear in the final declaration: establishing a level playing field across the ARRRA region; developing better cross‑border energy infrastructure; and accelerating permitting through so‑called ‘fast‑track zones’. CEOs said the declaration answers current challenges and called for rapid translation into concrete measures and investments.
Energy, CCS and innovation
The declaration stresses coordination on hydrogen and CO₂ infrastructure to enable a coherent hydrogen approach and a competitive cross‑border CCS value chain. It also calls for strengthened cooperation on the circular economy, sustainable shipping and innovation, including testing grounds for autonomous logistics and new technologies.
From agreements to action
The ports emphasise the need for coordinated, regularly monitored implementation of the summit agreements among authorities, ports and the EU to turn commitments into concrete actions and results.
Source: North Sea Port