Dutch to approve new mega-terminal in Rotterdam

Dutch to approve new mega-terminal in Rotterdam    The port of Rotterdam said it expects the Dutch government to approve Friday the construction of a second giant container terminal, to be called “Maasvlakte 2.”
   To be built by reclaiming land from the sea, the new container terminal will occupy 1,000 hectares (about 2,500 acres) and provide an estimated handling capacity of about 8 million TEUs a year, according to the port of Rotterdam.
   Construction of the dike and the filling of the area with sand will cost about 2.6 billion euros ($3.1 billion). New roads will also be required, as well as the building of quays, other civil works and the purchase of handling equipment.
   Rotterdam, the largest container port in Europe, has lost box traffic to its competitors in the last few years. However, many European ports are now facing congestion problems and the ports of Le Havre and Antwerp have announced large-scale expansion plans for their container activities.