On 14 July 2025, the Government of Flanders has approved the Geïntegreerd Investeringsprogramma (integrated investment programme, GIP), providing for substantial investments in two major infrastructure projects in North Sea Port.
The Government of Flanders' integrated investment programme, GIP, brings together all planned infrastructure investments of the policy area Mobiliteit en Openbare Werken (Mobility and Public Works). The recently approved GIP focuses strongly on the modal shift and sustainable transport, and provides for major investments in the seaports. For North Sea Port, this concerns two major projects that are of great importance for the development of the port: the Ghent-Terneuzen Canal and the North C Circular project.
Ghent-Terneuzen Canal
Investments in the Ghent-Terneuzen Canal are necessary to provide easier access to the port for larger ships and to make full use of the larger Nieuwe Sluis lock in Terneuzen. Flanders is working together with the Netherlands for this major project, which also fits into the larger framework of the canal as a European inland waterway axis, Seine-Scheldt (TEN-T).
Specifically, the project involves deepening the canal – from the Nieuwe Sluis to the Massagoedhaven 1.5 kilometres further – for ships with a draught of 14.5 metres, after which, as a next step, 43-metre-wide ships will be able to reach the Kluizendok and Rodenhuizedok in Ghent from the Nieuwe Sluis.
North C Circular
The North C Circular project focuses on anchoring and further developing economic activities in the port area. The development of this new circular business park requires, among other things, soil remediation of the historic dredging dumps. North Sea Port, together with ArcelorMittal Belgium, wants to set up the business park for innovative industries as part of the climate and energy transition, circularity and carbon neutrality. The aim is to attract circular projects that make the chemical and steel sectors climate neutral, says Cas König, CEO of North Sea Port, on LinkedIn. The business park will also be accessible by water (Rodenhuizedok), road (R4) and rail (L204), with pipelines for CO2, hydrogen and heat.
Image: North Sea Port
