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DUNKERQUE-PORT PRESENTS ITS CAP 2020 PROJECT
18th september 2017

At the launch of the public consultation on Monday 18 September 2017, Grand Port Maritime de Dunkerque presented its CAP 2020 project in the presence of François Soulet de Brugière, Chairman of the Dunkerque-Port's Board of Trustees, and the Port's CEO Stéphane Raison.

Dunkerque-Port is a major player in goods transport and in the economy of the Hauts-de-France region. It enjoys an ideal geographic location in northern Europe on one of the world's busiest seaways, large land reserves, first-class multimodal connections, and a potential market of 80 million consumers.

Its good accessibility and high-quality infrastructures mean it can berth large ships such as the latest-generation container carriers. Dunkerque-Port is strengthening its position as France's foremost multimodal port with an ever-increasing proportion of road-alternative transport modes.

In a fast-changing shipping market, Dunkerque-Port also faces new challenges. The growth of containerised sea freight to Europe, the alliance of leading shipowners, and the modernisation of the world fleet with larger and larger ships, all offer significant prospects of growth for the port and its district.

To seize these opportunities and take its place as a key link in the European distribution chain, Dunkerque-Port must increase its capacities for accommodating the larger new-generation container carriers and offer a complete system of logistics.

The CAP 2020 project has been designed to meet these challenges.

Beyond simply increasing the port's capacities, CAP 2020 is part of a comprehensive and sustainable dynamic. Reinforcing Dunkerque-Port's position in the supply chain of northern France will ensure positive spinoffs for the regional economy, with the creation of more than 16,000 jobs and1.8 billion Euros of added value in 2035. It will also encourage modal transfer through efficient rail and waterway connections, and reduce the environmental impact of goods transport. With its estimated costs and its phased performance schedule, CAP 2020 is a reasonable, balanced project.

The public consultation on the CAP 2020 project will run from 18 September to 22 December 2017.

During this period a number of discussion events and meetings will be organised by an independent commission (the Special Commission for Public Consultation) to inform the public and allow everyone to express their views on this ambitious project.

About Dunkerque-Port:

The largest French port complex (Calais-Dunkirk); the ninth port of the Channel and North Sea Range and France's third-largest port, Dunkirk has built a reputation in many sectors: it is the largest passenger port in Europe (Calais-Dunkirk hub); France's largest energy hub; the country's largest LNG terminal; the leading French port for containerised fruit and vegetable imports; the largest French port for ore and coal imports; France's largest rail port; the region's largest waterway port; and the third-ranking French port for grain traffic. Dunkerque-Port is also a sustainable port. It is the trading port of the new Hauts-de-France Region, the largest agricultural region of France, the leading region for the rail industry, and the leading region for the car industry. Traffic in 2016 was 46.7 MT.

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