Fewer goods handled at Dutch seaports, particularly coal and natural gas

© CBS
The total volume of incoming and outgoing cargo that passed through seaports in the Neth-erlands in 2024 fell by 1.1 percent to 577 million tonnes. Both inbound and outbound goods declined compared to the previous year. This was due in part to a drop of 3.1 percent in the unloading of wet bulk commodities, such as crude oil. This is according to new figures re-leased by Statistics Netherlands (CBS).
A total of 395 million tonnes of goods arrived at seaports in the Netherlands in 2024 - a year-on-year decline of 1.3 percent. The volume of outbound goods destined for other countries also decreased by 0.5 percent to 182 million tonnes.

In almost all ports, fewer goods were transshipped (i.e. unloaded from a ship onto the shore or loaded from the shore onto a ship). At the port of Rotterdam, which handles 78 percent of all goods, 0.8 percent fewer goods were transshipped. Transshipments also declined at the ports of Amsterdam and Groningen. The only increase was in the North Sea ports (Vlissingen and Terneuzen).

Fewer dry and wet bulk products arrived by ship

Cargo volumes arriving by ship were down for all types of goods compared to 2023. Wet bulk goods, including petroleum, petroleum products and natural gas, were down by 3.1 percent. Petroleum and petroleum products were down by 1.6 percent. Goods arriving from the United States, where these goods come from most often, were up by 12.2 percent. Goods arriving from the United Kingdom, the second largest supplier, saw a decline of 9.9 percent.

Shipments of liquefied natural gas (LNG) fell by 12.4 percent. The majority of these goods (66.2 percent) came from the United States in 2024.


Inbound shipments of dry bulk goods, such as coal and ores, also decreased (by 0.6 percent). Most dry bulk goods came from Brazil and Canada, while the United States dropped from second place to fifth with respect to the supply of this category of goods. The amount of coal (-25.1 percent) and agricultural products (-7.7 percent) shipped from the United States were down, in particular.


With respect to goods leaving the Netherlands, the volume of liquid bulk goods declined (by 5.4 percent), while dry bulk goods and containerised goods increased by 11.9 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively.

More containers arrived

More containerised goods arrived at seaports in the Netherlands in 2024. The total weight of containers arriving rose by 3.5 percent, and the number of containers (in TEU) rose by 4.1 percent. Nearly 30 percent of containerised goods came from China, 8.3 percent more than in the previous year.

United States remains largest supplier of goods

Imports from the United States were down by 4.7 percent compared with 2023. But at 55.8 million tonnes, the US still provides the largest share of goods arriving by ship (14.1 per-cent). These are mainly crude oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG). In 2022, Russia supplied the most goods. But starting in December 2022, that changed due to additional EU sanctions on crude oil, petroleum products and coal from Russia. In 2024, by contrast, only 3.2 percent of inbound cargo came from Russia.


After the United States, most of the goods arriving in 2024 (as in 2023) came from the United Kingdom (mainly crude oil & petroleum products and containerised goods), Norway (mainly crude oil and stone), Brazil (mainly iron ore and crude oil) and China (mainly electronic components and basic chemicals).