The Port of Leixões represents approximately 27% of the GDP of the municipality of Matosinhos, 11% of the GDP of the Norte Region, 6% of the Portuguese GDP, 20% of employment in Matosinhos, 11% of employment in the Norte Region, 6% of total national employment, and 20% of Portuguese foreign trade by maritime routes.

The Port of Leixões is an important port in the context of the national and Iberian port system, through which goods are exported to more than 180 countries via a significant network of shipping lines. It is the second largest port in Portugal in terms of cargo traffic, with an annual movement of around 19.5 million tons, an annual containerized cargo movement of over 685 thousand TEUs, and an annual Ro-Ro cargo movement of over 1.3 million tons - making it the largest port in Portugal in this market segment.

Despite the good results, the physical structure of Leixões has affected the port's operability due to:

Physical limitations for the expansion of embankments;
Exhaustion of capacity of current embankments;
Constraints of ship drafts to existing depths.

The conversion of the Multi-purpose Terminal, located near the South Breakwater of the port of Leixões, will allow the creation of a New Terminal with depths of -15.5 meters (ZHL), a quay line of 490 meters, a support land area of ​​16 hectares, and a capacity of 655 thousand TEUs. With a total planned investment value (construction and equipment) of around 200 million euros, it will allow the reception of ships up to 6000 TEUs (approximately 300 meters in length, 40 meters in beam, and 13.8 meters in draft) and meet the new demand characteristics, enabling the recovery of important shipping companies for the port of Leixões.

Modernisation of the Fishing Port

  • Establishing a New Cold Storage Facility
  • Establishing a New Ice Factory
  • Providing new facilities for FOR-MAR, which will share the future building of the Cold Storage Center.
  • Improving the mooring conditions of quays 1 and 2, which remain unchanged.
  • Creating a new dock line inside, approximately 270 meters long, for mooring fishing vessels, thereby creating a new harbor.

  • Leixões could receive an additional 17% of traffic.

    Increase in Leixões' contribution to the national GDP to 7.5% by 2026 (compared to 6.3% in 2018).

    €900 million per year increase in the Gross Value Added of the Northern region, directly, indirectly, and induced by these investments.

    Average annual growth of 2% in containerized cargo.

    Savings in transportation costs along the logistics chain amounting to €115 million.

    Positive environmental externalities worth €50 million.

    Modal shift from road to maritime transport with reduced environmental impact and accident rate

    Enhancement of Leixões Port's capacity in terms of container cargo handling by +60%, and doubling in the Ro-Ro sector

    Creation of a total of 175 direct jobs (which represents 2.5% of the number of unemployed residents in Matosinhos)

    Creation of about 5,000 new indirect jobs, of which around 1,100 are in companies directly linked to the port sector.

  • Improvement of the quay bridges

    Replacement of floating walkways

    Creation of embankment

    Establishment of a new quay line generating a new sheltered port

    Creation of a berthing dock for small boats

    Assignment of waterfront space at the northwest boundary of the new terminal

    Creation of a new cold storage warehouse

    Establishment of a new ice factory

    Creation of facilities for the Professional Fisheries and Sea Training Center (FOR-MAR)

    Establishment of dry docking area for boats

    Installation of a fuel station

    Installation of a hoist

  • Access to the construction site via the internal roads of the port

    Ensure that the noisiest operations near residential areas are limited to daytime hours and weekdays

    Ensure the operation of the new fishing core to the north and the new equipment before the inoperability and demolition of the southern quay.l

    Anticipate the necessary temporary spaces, structures, and equipment for the normal operation of the fishing port during construction.

    Throughout the construction, prioritize the activities of the various terminals of the Leixões port.

    Provide berthing area for artisanal and small vessels equal to or greater than the current capacity in the fishing port throughout the construction phase.

  • Implementation of an "acoustic barrier" solution to be developed next to the northeast fence of the port of Leixões.

    Improvement of the Port Ring Road with the application of less noisy pavement.

    Development of the landscaping integration project of the New Terminal and its equipment.

    Utilization of electric cargo handling equipment.

    Calling of next-generation ships with lower emissions.

Environmental Impact Study

 

The Environmental Impact Study, currently under public discussion by the APA - Portuguese Environment Agency, highlights minimally significant negative impacts, mainly related to actions during the construction phase. Also, in the operational phase, the overall picture suggests limited negative impacts.

Social and economic impacts are positive, highly significant in the region, in macroeconomic terms, in job creation (direct and indirect), in the dynamization of the port sector and related activities, among others.

Most relevant mitigation measures:

Local access will be exclusively through existing internal port roads (VILPL and Port Beltway), with the use of local road networks prohibited.

Improvement of the Port Beltway with the application of less noisy pavement.

Development of a landscaping project for the New Terminal, considering the creation of green spaces for framing.

Whenever possible, use local labor, favoring the employment of unemployed residents of the municipality of Matosinhos.

Procurement of products and services from companies located in the Greater Porto region, aiming to maximize the regional value retention.