The seven year contract was awarded by MBZ (Maatschappij van de Brugse Zeevaartinrichtingen NV/Port of Zeebrugge) to URS, part of SMIT Towage Northwest Europe. The concession represents, based on expected traffic volumes, a total turnover of approximately EUR 90 million.
Through URS, SMIT Towage Northwest Europe has a traditionally strong position in the sea ports of Belgium. Zeebrugge mainly handles large seagoing container vessels, RORO carriers and LNG tankers. To accommodate an increase in the number of vessel movements and to be able to assist increasingly larger vessels, SMIT will deploy more powerful tugs. SMIT will station six tugs and a fire fighting vessel in the Port of Zeebrugge.
Joachim Coens, CEO MBZ “The quality of the offer and the technical capabilities of URS were decisive in the award of the concession. We are extremely satisfied with how the tender procedure was conducted and look forward to a good and efficient cooperation with URS.”
The Boskalis strategy is designed to benefit from the key macro-economic drivers that fuel global demand in our selected markets: global trade, increasing energy consumption, expanding population pressures and the challenges of changing climate conditions. This concession is closely related to the growth of global trade and the need to assist large seagoing vessels.