Bringing the maritime sector in India and the Netherlands together.
Home
 Holland branding

The Dutch Maritime Sector

 Maritieme cluster FocusonIndia

The Dutch maritime cluster The Dutch have centuries of naval experience and today, we are once again a leading maritime nation. We operate Europe’s largest inland shipping fleet and are globally leading manufacturers of high-end yachts and complex specials. The Port of Rotterdam is the world’s third-largest port and Amsterdam is Europe’s fourth largest.

The Dutch maritime cluster comprises 11 different clusters, yet complementary industries that operate in a 100-kilometre radius. This encourages close cooperation on innovation and production, allowing industries to build on each other’s strength. The Netherlands also distinguishes itself by offering multimodal solutions in transport by road, inland waterway, air and rail. Besides this the Netherlands offers a globally competitive group of suppliers to the offshore (maritime) industry and specialised R&D institutes. Overall, the Dutch maritime cluster focuses on high-end, added value markets that require high levels of expertise, exceptional craftsmanship and research-based innovation.

Unique Selling Points

  • The Netherlands’ position in a highly industrialised piece of the Rhine delta has made the country virtually the front door to Europe. A short distance from this delta area is also Schiphol, a large airport hub, and goods that enter the Netherlands can make their way in no time at all via an intricate network of inland waterways and railway lines such as the Betuwe line to the European hinterland. The favourable tax regulations for transit goods also make the Netherlands a very attractive location for distribution offices. In short, the Netherlands is a true ‘Gateway to Europe’.
  • The Netherlands is known worldwide for its complex vessels, specifically dredging vessels, high-speed patrol boats, construction vessels for the offshore cluster, mega yachts for the rich and famous and dedicated short sea ships. The Dutch Compensated Gross Tonnage in these areas is consistently one of the highest in the world.
  • Several Dutch consultancies have world-leading positions in maritime engineering, dredging, and spatial planning, in part due to experience gained through the Rotterdam and Amsterdam ports. Dutch companies are called upon to construct and maintain ports and waterways worldwide.
  • The Dutch have a dominant position in luxury yachts, particularly (semi) custom made ones longer than 45 meters. Of the 218 yachts in this segment that are currently under construction, 75 are being made by Dutch craftsmen, a 35% market share.
  • Specialised R&D institutes are laying the foundations for innovation in areas like ship building, maritime construction, materials technology and marine ecology.
  • Research conducted by the Norwegian School of Management in 2004 shows that the Netherlands is the most attractive location for investments in the maritime industry when compared to Norway, Denmark, the United Kingdom and Germany.
  • The government, academia and private sector are implementing a long-term innovation programme that focuses on the need of the energy sector to embrace LNG, the production of gas and oil in ultra deep water and the ongoing growth of global shipping.
  • Labor climate: flexible temporary labor, high language skills, availability of labor (labor pools)

 Facts & figures

  • The Dutch maritime cluster comprises 11 sub sectors and 11,500 companies, which employ 190,00 employees and generate turnover of €27 billion.
  • The cluster has a strong international focus: 64% of turnover is exported and shipbuilders are establishing operations worldwide, employing 37,500 people outside of the Netherlands.
  • The Netherlands is the world’s eight largest trading country, with only 0.267% of the world’s population. Of course, such a small country cannot produce all the goods that it exports on its own. Put simply, that means that countless foreign companies opt to distribute their goods via the Netherlands.
  • In 2007, The Port of Rotterdam processed 407 million tons of goods • The Rotterdam port area, which is already the largest in Europe, will soon be expanded to include a further 1000-hectare industrial area called Maasvlakte 2.
  • In 2007, Dutch shipbuilding cluster employed 35,000 FTE in the Netherlands, generating revenues of €7.6 billion.
  • The 750 maritime suppliers reported growth of 20%, with annual turnover reaching €4.9 billion in 2007.