From the arrival of the first containers in Antwerp in the 1960s, it was a success story that is still carrying on today.

The first container vessel - that is, the first vessel that was specifically constructed for container transport - arrived in Antwerp on 10 September 1967.   It was the Atlantic Span, operated by Atlantic Container Line. That year, the Port of Antwerp handled  nearly 57,000 containers. In 2005, the port handled 4.25 million containers (or 6.5 million TEU). 

According to L. Beacklund (Captain of the Atlantic Span), the first call of a container ship in Antwerp was very successful. He said: “Here, everything happens as if you have been handling containers for a number of years."  From the arrival of the first vessel, Antwerp has playing an important role in the container trade as one of the major container ports in the world!

Click here to read about the first containers arriving in Antwerp in 1967

Pictured in this album are photos from the early 1970's

Today, with its new tidal dock (Deurganckdock), Antwerp is more than doubling its container handling capacity. And with the  deepening of the river Scheldt, Antwerp keeps up with the container shipping business and remain a major containerport in Europe - and the world! 

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