On the one hand this is about infrastructure with the Big Link, the biggest infrastructure project in Europe. On the other hand it is about smart mobility. Both are having a big effect on climate. 

In smart mobility we are offering several Mobility as a Service products. The ambition is a big modal and green shift in the city and the wider region. Antwerp is the biggest mobitech hub in Belgium with more than 25% of all companies providing technology for mobility. 

Antwerp has several major companies who are on the world top ranking. And new companies can find a place on industrial site NextGen District. NextGen District invites innovators to bring their vision to life. To design, develop and execute projects that initiate real change. From linear to circular. From factories to networks. From using to reusing.

Of the five first companies to sign a contract three are recycling companies and pioneers within the circular industry: TripleHelix, Bolder Industries & PureCycle.

In full development is hydrogen. The Port of Antwerp-Bruges spans the full value chain of hydrogen: R&D - import – production – pipelines and storage. R&D will be carried out in the Maritime Campus Antwerp and at the University of Antwerp. Antwerp is in the running for a hydrogen application driven research facility. As an active pioneer of the sustainable hydrogen economy, POAB has the ambition to become an important European import hub of green hydrogen.

A Hydrogen Import Coalition is formed between Deme, Engie, Exmar, Fluxys, Port of Antwerp-Bruges and WaterstofNet to develop the hydrogen import value chain.

The Port of Antwerp-Bruges and several private companies are closing deals and setting up projects to import green hydrogen: the Port of Antwerp-Bruges has an agreement with Chili, CMB invests 18 million dollar to produce green hydrogen in Namibia, and will start soon in Japan where it is building as well an R&D facility, DEME will produce in Oman and possibly Egypt.

The imported hydrogen will arrive by ship in Zeebrugge and then be transported by pipeline to Antwerp.  

• In June 2022 the US based energy company Plug announced a 300 million investment in a 100MW production facility on NextGen District. This is a major investment in Europe. 

• Air Liquide is building the first pilot plant for cracking ammonia (NH3) on an industrial scale in the port of Antwerp. The plant combines an efficient new process to convert large quantities of ammonia into hydrogen. The cracking plant will also function as an additional production unit.

• Atlas Copco – with its HQ for compressors in Antwerp – is developing hydrogen compressors.

• Agfa-Gevaert is producing membranes for hydrogen facilities.  

In the meantime the use of hydrogen will rise. The Port of Antwerp-Bruges has already tug boats on hydrogen and methanol. CMB has ordered 200 trucks on hydrogen. And it is investing heavily in hydrogen ships. It has built the biggest hydrogen ship in the world. 

The City of Antwerp is investigating a hydrogen hub on Blue Gate Antwerp. Port of Antwerp-Bruges promotes the development of revolutionary solutions for CO2 reduction and hydrogen production, stimulates economic growth and attracts green investments.

Energy transition – from fossil to renewables – is a major ambition in the City and the Port. The Port of Antwerp-Bruges has a lot of initiatives in this respect: wind energy, solar energy and use of residual heat are daily fare. Chemical company BASF bought half of a big windmill park, 1,5 gigawatt, located before the Dutch coast. It invests 1,6 billion euro to bring solar energy to its production facility in Antwerp. The logistics company ADPO installed a Solar Mirror plant, generating heat from concentrated sunlight, a practice that has never been applied in Europe. 

The Ecluse network delivers 50% green steam for companies at the Left bank. It wants to expand to the Right bank, thus saving 100.000 tons CO2. A tunnel connection forms an essential link that makes it possible to create a sustainable, circular, and climate-neutral chemistry on both banks of the river Scheldt.

For Carbon capture, utilization & storage a project and coalition is formed, under the project name Antwerp@C. The capture and storage of CO₂ (Carbon Capture & Storage, CCS) and, in the long term, the reuse of CO₂ as a raw material for various applications (Carbon Capture & Utilization, CCU), are seen as important steps in the transition to a carbon-neutral port. That is why we are joining forces with seven leading players from the energy and chemical sector. Together with Air Liquide, BASF, Borealis, ExxonMobil, INEOS, Fluxys and Total Energies, we are working on innovative CO₂ reduction. The Antwerp@C project has the potential to reduce CO₂ emissions in Antwerp by half by 2030.  

The city invests in heat networks in an attempt to heat as many buildings as possible in a sustainable way. The first heat network is in the new neighbourhood ‘New South’. A second one is the Antwerp North Heat Network which reuses residual heat from the industry in the port. In February 2024, Antwerp North Heat Network kicked off with a first carbon-free heat delivery from Indaver to Boortmalt. This network is the first 'open access' heat network in Belgium, offering opportunities for new suppliers and customers.

Because Antwerp is a future-oriented city it took a headlong rush by adopting end 2020 an ambitious Climate Action Plan. This Plan envisages with concrete measures minus 50 to 55% CO2 reduction by 2030, and a climate neutral city by 2050. With this plan the city of Antwerp shows its ambition to tackle climate challenges. And this goes further than European standards. Climate neutrality in 2050 is an ambition as well for the Port of Antwerp-Bruges.

The city has adopted a specific governance model with an external climate director and an advisory board. 

In 2022, Ecorys analyzed the Climate Plan in more depth (for the period 2018-2030). The conclusion of this analysis was that with current actions and implementation speed, in 2030 the intended CO2 emission reduction will not be achieved.

Innovation will continue to be the key to achieve the goals of this ambitious Climate Action Plan. Also additional policy from the City is necessary to adhere to the initial ambition and to be well prepared for future tightening of policy from Flanders and Europe.

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