Europe’s prominent port, Antwerp-Bruges pays working visit to UniKL MIMET

One of the largest breakbulk ports and the largest port for the throughput of vehicles in Europe, ‘Port of Antwerp-Bruges’ paid a working visit to Universiti Kuala Lumpur Malaysian Institute of Marine Engineering Technology (UniKL MIMET), last Wednesday (18 May 2022).

The delegation of the Belgium-based port included its Director, Mr. Mario Lievens and Senior Consultant, Mr. Michiel Dubos.

During the working visit, both parties exchanged views concerning the latest developments in the maritime industry and viable future collaborations that can be explored, which was also joined by a delegation of Lumut Port, led by its Chief Executive Officer, Tuan Haji Mubarak Ali.

UniKL MIMET, meanwhile, was headed by the Dean of the Lumut-based campus, Prof. Cmdr (Rtd) Dr. Aminuddin Md Arof, and accompanied by the Director of UniKL International Office, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Zalhan Mohd Zin as well as the Director of UniKL Marketing, Student Recruitment & Admission Division (MesRA), Assoc. Prof. Ts. Dr. Eida Nadirah Roslin.

The working visit is believed to provide excellent opportunities for Malaysia – which is represented by UniKL MIMET and Lumut Port, and Belgium through Port of Antwerp-Bruges to embark on collaborative innovation within the sector and education of maritime.

The potential collaboration may capitalise on UniKL MIMET’s strategic location, situated in the Lumut Maritime Terminal (LMT) area as well as the industry-specific maritime engineering technology programmes it offers, in addition to the shared position of the ports of Antwerp and Zeebrugge within the global supply chain.

As of now, the campus has sealed several memoranda of understanding (MoU) with major companies and government agencies such as Boustead Naval Shipyard, Vale, Destini, Jabatan Laut Malaysia, Technology Depository Agency Berhad (TDA) and others.

On the other hand, in the foreseeable future, Port of Antwerp-Bruges will account for more than 15% of Europe’s liquid natural gas transited and it will of course remain Europe’s most important chemical hub.

Finally, it will be the largest port for cruise ships in the Benelux. With a total throughput of 278 million tonnes per year, the unified port will be able to consolidate its leading position in the world.