Discovering how trade policy works in practice

29 November 2022
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On the 29th of November a delegation of the International Trade Committee (INTA) of the European Parliament spent the day at the port of Rotterdam. The purpose of the work visit was to acquaint the Members of Parliament with the importance of the Port’s energy hub function for Europe.

Members of parliament aboard the Nieuwe Maze

It also provided an insight of how trade policy works in practice and the challenges that companies and organizations located at the port face with the implementation of new legislations. The main topics discussed included the energy crisis and the disruption of the global supply chain in connection to the war in Ukraine.

The INTA Committee visited Customs at the Second Maasvlakte and the Euro Tank Terminal (ETT) at Europoort. Customs provided them with an introduction to their role in the European and international trade environment and what their priorities are in their activities relevant to topics, such as deforestation, drug trafficking, and the ban of forced labor product.

This was followed by a short tour through the facilities where the MEP’s saw first-hand what a manual inspection of a container entails. The working visit ended with an on-site visit at ETT, which specializes in fuel oil and middle distillates. During the visit, the MEP’s were informed about the activities of the terminal and their plans regarding energy transition.

With regard to the latter, it became clear that ETT as a tank storage company is closely connected to an integrated ecosystem of cooperating companies and trading partners. Maintaining this ecosystem is essential for the successful roll-out to low-emission and zero-emission energy carriers.