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Rates and general terms and conditions for shipping 2023

Published on Wed 21 Dec 2022

The use of the port infrastructure in North Sea Port is subject to general terms and conditions and rates. In order to offer customers an optimum service, the same rates are charged in the entire cross-border port area of North Sea Port (i.e. in Vlissingen/Terneuzen and Ghent).

The following will apply to rates in 2023.

For maritime shipping, an inflation correction of +9% will be applied (for the entire port area), based on the European average. No indexation took place in 2021 and 2022, due to the uniformisation of rates that was being prepared at that time. New: Green Corridor Discount for vessels operating to a fixed timetable and using zero-emission fuels. This discount represents 10% of port dues and is valid for a period of 5 years. It is cumulative with the ESI discount.
An indexation of +9% will also be applied to inland navigation, based on average European inflation. The final step will also be taken in the full harmonisation of rates in Vlissingen, Terneuzen and Ghent. From 2023, all rates will be the same throughout the port area.

Full rate books and terms and conditions can be found on our website.

To the Rates and Terms and Conditions webpage

One cross-border port area

Following the merger of Ghent Port Authority and Zeeland Seaports on 1 January 2018, various projects have been launched to enable customers to operate within a single cross-border port area. The harmonisation of shipping rates systems is crucial to that aim.

For this reason, work began in 2019 to harmonise port dues for inland navigation. These came into effect on 1 January 2020. The same year saw preparations for the harmonisation of maritime rates, effective from 1 January 2021.

For inland navigation, 2022 marks the final step in uniformisation between the Dutch and Flemish parts of the port area, as a result of which all rates will be the same (for Vlissingen, Terneuzen and Ghent) from 2023.