SUSTAINABLE, INNOVATIVE BUSINESSES IN CHEMICALS, CLEANTECH AND LOGISTICS WILL FIND THE BREEDING GROUND FOR THEIR FUTURE GROWTH HERE.
The public-private partnership brings together a lot of relevant expertise, political support and financial strength. As a developer, BGAD forms the foundations for a new Antwerp entrepreneur community. “As the developer of the site, BGAD gives sustainability the highest priority with regard to all its aspects. That’s one of the reasons why we, amongst others, base ourselves on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. In this respect, we choose decisively more for a development where the ultimate balance is found between the economic, social and ecological aspect, than a quick financial return.” says Peter Garré, Managing Director BGAD nv and Managing Director Bopro nv (responsible for the business development at BGA).
“The City of Antwerp is investing in the economy of the future. With Blue Gate Antwerp, we are committing to the transition to a sustainable and circular economy.” says Claude Marinower, Chairman of BGAPH and deputy mayor for economy, innovation and industry for the City of Antwerp.
The site is located near the river Scheldt, close to the centre of Antwerp. Once at the heart of the European Petroleum industry, the site experienced a thorough clean-up and starts an exciting new chapter in its history: Blue Gate Antwerp, the ground-breaking public-private project for businesses wanting to take control of the future, starting today. This goal will be achieved by choosing decisively for innovation and development.
BGA embraces like-minded businesses to activate circular flows at the micro and macro levels. This delivers cost efficiency and environmental-friendly collaborations both on and off site. Businesses locating here are committed to eco-effective industry.
“This new CityHub brings us a big step closer to our mission of being fully CO2 neutral by 2050. CO2 emissions are drastically reduced because, thanks to the ideal location of the new CityHub, we can only use electric cargo bikes and vans for optimal and sustainable city distribution”, says Danny Van Himste, Managing Director BeLux of DHL Express.
Blue Gate Antwerp attracts complementary businesses. R&D companies and small manufacturing firms are welcome here. Together we are strong. We are committed to a circular economy and we are keen to enter into sustainable partnerships. In this way, every business at BGA will be able to benefit from economies of scale which strengthen their market position. Collaboration is the keyword on this site.
Collaborations inbetween businesses and between businesses and academia have synergistic effects. Sharing research efforts and expertise accelerates innovation. Setting up complementary processes improves efficiency, while group purchases reduce costs. The presence of BlueChem and BlueApp boosts cross-fertilisation in the areas of knowledge and production. BlueChem is an incubator for sustainable chemistry, while BlueApp is an university pre-incubator for research projects in the field of sustainable chemistry. Their input will cut the time-to-market and accelerate innovation of the businesses at BGA.
The water-bound transport, circular chains and multi-modal intake, make of BGA a site ‘conquering’ Europe over water and land. The unique location near the Scheldt and near the centre of Antwerp offers numerous possibilities where the sharing environment stimulates sustainable innovations and intake of employees can be managed in a smart way.
