Rotterdam Model Finds Dynamic Berth Allocation Can Match Barge Throughput Without Dedicated Berth
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A new Erasmus-led berth-planning study applied to Hutchison Ports ECT Delta Terminal in Rotterdam finds that state-dependent allocation can achieve the same modeled barge throughput without permanently reserving an entire berth for barges. The 37-page paper, written September 2026 and posted to SSRN, compares deep-sea vessel waiting time against barge throughput under shared, partially reserved, dedicated and dynamically adjusted berth policies. Its three principal findings are that fixed partial reservation was dominated by either full sharing or full dedication, dedicated barge berths produced diminishing throughput gains while imposing increasingly disproportionate waiting-time costs on deep-sea vessels, and a state-dependent approach could reach the same barge-throughput level without a berth being permanently dedicated to barges. The results are modeling findings applied to ECT Delta rather than measurements from an operational change at the terminal.
One Berth, Two Very Different Customers
Deep-sea vessels arrive with contractual service expectations. Inland barges need enough terminal access to support modal-shift targets. The new research asks whether permanently separating their berth capacity is actually the most efficient answer.
Permanently removing berth capacity from the deep-sea pool can increase waiting time for liner vessels that typically operate under terminal service agreements.
In the modeled policy space, fixed partial reservation was dominated by either fully sharing capacity or fully dedicating berth capacity.
Additional dedicated barge capacity delivered progressively smaller throughput gains while deep-sea vessel waiting-time costs increased disproportionately.
State-dependent reservation responded to terminal conditions and reached the same modeled barge-throughput level without permanently assigning an entire berth to barges.
Four Ways to Allocate the Same Quay
The study compares fixed berth-capacity rules with a state-dependent policy that changes allocation as conditions inside the terminal change.
| Policy | How Capacity Is Used | Barge Effect | Deep-Sea Effect | Study Result | Operational Character |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Full Sharing Static | No berth is permanently ring-fenced. Deep-sea vessels and barges draw from shared capacity according to the operating rule. | Barge access depends more heavily on capacity remaining available around deep-sea demand. | Preserves the largest common pool of capacity for ocean-going vessels. | One of the efficient endpoints against which partial reservation was compared. | High physical flexibility, but less guaranteed barge access. |
| Partial Reservation Static | A fixed barge-acceptance limit reserves only part of available berth capacity. | Attempts to protect some barge capacity without dedicating a complete berth. | Reduces some flexibility available to deep-sea calls. | The researchers found the modeled partial-reservation policies were dominated by full sharing or full dedication. | Intuitive compromise, but not on the efficient frontier in the model. |
| Dedicated Barge Berth Static | An entire berth is removed from the common pool and made available to barges. | Raises protected barge capacity, but additional throughput gains diminish. | The paper finds increasingly disproportionate deep-sea waiting-time cost as capacity is dedicated. | Higher barge throughput does not increase proportionally with capacity removed from deep-sea use. | Clear capacity guarantee, but sacrifices flexibility. |
| State-Dependent Reservation Dynamic Reference | Capacity decisions change according to the current state of the terminal rather than staying permanently fixed. | The model reaches the same barge-throughput target achieved with dedicated capacity. | No berth has to remain permanently unavailable to deep-sea vessels. | This produces the paper's headline result. | More responsive, but the authors present the MDP as a reference rather than a ready-made operating prescription. |
ECT lists four kilometers of quay along Europahaven and Amazonehaven at the Delta Terminal.
The main Delta terminal complex occupies 272 hectares and can receive the largest fully laden container ships.
ECT says more than 400 inland vessels call its Delta and Euromax terminals combined each week.
ECT currently handles barges beside deep-sea ships when possible and also operates dedicated inland-shipping facilities.
The Research Sits Inside Europe's MAGPIE Port Program
The paper acknowledges funding through Horizon 2020 grant 101036594. MAGPIE, coordinated by the Port of Rotterdam Authority, focuses on greener and more efficient multimodal port operations, including inland-waterway and rail connections.
Berth Allocation Policy Explorer
Select a capacity policy to compare how the new Rotterdam study characterizes its barge-throughput, deep-sea and flexibility tradeoffs.
State-Dependent Reservation
Capacity reservation responds to the current state of the terminal rather than remaining fixed.
The allocation rule changes according to congestion and the state of the system rather than reserving the same amount of capacity at all times.
The model seeks to preserve barge throughput while avoiding the fixed deep-sea capacity penalty created by permanent dedication.
State-dependent capacity reservation reached the same modeled barge throughput without dedicating a berth exclusively to barges.
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