DUAL Ports project completed with success
Today environmental and climate issues are on top of the agenda all over the world.
Seven years ago, this wasn’t the case, but a group of European ports acted and founded the project Dual Ports funded by the North Sea Region Interreg program.
The target was to develop and create a green and sustainable way of developing ports all over the EU to become a leader in the green transition within the Harbour sector in Europe.
The target of the project is to go green with a high focus on sustainability, reducing carbon emission and reducing the operating cost. The ports started to work with the green transition long before it became on top of the public agenda.
“The Dual Ports projects foresaw this year’s back when the project was founded – and it was the Sign of the Times – that we started out so yearly and made European ports ready to deal with what we know today,” says Jan Allaert, Port of Oostende, Lead Beneficiary, and project lead Dual Ports.
The key results were presented at a conference in Brussels Thursday June 16th, 2022.
According to the cumulative results calculated by the Hamburgisches Welt- WirtschaftsInstitut (HWWI) the operating cost have been reduced by 23 % – the target was 20%.
The total carbon emission has been reduced by 82 % – the target was 10 %.
“The key results clearly support the set goals years ago. We can make ports more sustainable and greener by reducing costs and carbon footprint. The overall results are impressing and a huge performance by all project partners,” says Jan Allaert, Port of Oostende, Lead Beneficiary, and project lead Dual Ports.
16 different pilots involving ports in Denmark, Germany, Scotland, Netherlands, and Belgium have been a part of the Dual Ports project during the last 7 years.
One of the partners is Port of Vordingborg in the southern part of Zeeland in Denmark.
In 2014 the port wanted to expand and be a greener port at the same time. The port joined Dual Ports and the pilot project was to prove that use of recycled products, such as contaminated soil, concrete, and excessive soil from building projects in the municipality.
“In 2023 the Port of Vordingborg is eight times bigger than when we joined the Dual Ports project in 2015. We wanted to be a green port and expand in a sustainable way. We have proved that is can be done by recycling of contaminated soil and residues. The carbon footprint is reduced by 20 % and the fourth port expansion that is in progress now is 100 % financed by use of recovered soil,” says Jan-Jaap Cramer, CEO Port of Vordingborg.
Project lead Jan Allaert from Port of Oostende stresses the future role for small and medium sized ports in Europe as leaders in the green transition and hubs for green and climate friendly energy production and transportation.
“The Dual Port project has been a major success and we have by far proved that ports play a vital role in the green transition. The project turned out to be a frontrunner in creating green and climate friendly solutions in ports around EU,” Jan Allaert, Port of Oostende, Lead Beneficiary, and project lead Dual Ports.
Note to editors:
DUAL Ports is a 6-year project, started in 2015.
It is 50% co-funded by the European Union and the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the Interreg North Sea Region Programme 2014 – 2020, Eco-innovation priority.
DUAL Ports addresses the Programme objective of promoting resource efficiency and stimulating the adoption of new products, services and processes to reduce the environmental footprint of regions around the North Sea.
DUAL Ports will be measured in the concrete success of the pilots and the pilots’ transferability to other Regional Entrepreneurial Ports. The aim of the project is to collectively reduce carbon emissions by 12% and lower costs by 20%.
DUAL Ports aims to decarbonise Regional Entrepreneurial Ports (REPs)́ resources through a shared eco-innovation port programme that minimises their environmental footprint.
The objective of DUAL Ports is to
• reduce the environmental footprint of regional entrepreneurial ports,
• improve the sustainability of ports’ operational and administration resources,
• promote responsible growth and supporting eco-innovation-oriented development.
The project will ultimately enhance ports’ energy efficiency and performance, facilitating low carbonisation at reduced costs, with added value in terms of knowledge and investment.
Project Partners
- Port of Oostende
- Business Vordingborg
- Port of Vordingborg
- Port of Skagen
- Orkney Islands Council Marine Services
- ITM Power
- Fair Winds Trust
- Niedersachsen Ports GmbH & Co. KG Branch Emden
- Port of Zwolle
- Hamburgisches Welt- WirtschaftsInstitut (HWWI)
- Port of Hvide Sande
- Hvide Sande Fjernvarme A.m.b.A.
- Greenport
- Uppsala University
- Celtic Cruises Ltd
- Seabased
