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EFESO Group
Global EFESO
Belgium
EFESO Belgium
Belgium

Achieving Sustainable Transformation, From Vision to Strategy and Implementation, for a Major European Port

A major European port faced the complex challenge of becoming a climate-neutral hub while maintaining operational excellence. Together with the organization, we orchestrated a comprehensive transformation program spanning eight project streams. This partnership established the foundations for the port to become Europe’s hydrogen hub.

Industry: Transportation, Logistics and Services

Service: Digital & Ai

Service: Operations Strategy and Transformation

Service: People and Organization

Service: Sustainability

Parallaxe

Our Client

This operation ranks among the world’s 17 largest seaports. Its highly complex structure operates as a network of diverse service providers, connecting sea, river and road logistics.

The port serves as home to industrial production facilities, energy infrastructure and high-tech laboratories, functioning as regulator, operator, lessor and community builder.

+164K

Direct and indirect jobs

1.4K

Companies operating

€20.8B

Added value

“

You need a partner that helps you every day, across every division and department, to support the shift in mindset required from one stage to the next. EFESO was the right choice for us, and we achieved great work together!

“
Parallaxe

The Challenge

The port’s vision was to become a leading ecosystem builder to ensure a sustainable future, aligned with six UN Sustainable Development Goals. This required:

  • Organizational transformation after 20 years of unchanged structure – The company’s brand, culture, organization, asset management and digital capabilities needed comprehensive expansion to meet its sustainability ambitions
  • Managing extreme operational complexity – Coordinating diverse service providers, multiple transport modes, industrial production and energy systems—while maintaining throughput — required unprecedented integration
  • Achieving climate neutrality without compromising growth – Balancing environmental transformation with operational excellence demanded simultaneous advancement in sustainability, efficiency and capacity

Real Results Achieved Together

The transformation program successfully positioned the port as a sustainability leader through integrated operational and environmental improvements.

Working alongside internal teams we implemented changes across the entire ecosystem, from container terminals to hydrogen infrastructure.

80%

Projects realized on-time

50%

CO2 reduction by 2030

+20%

Throughput increased

€357M

EU funding secured

Transformation Impact

  • Established hydrogen alliance, positioning the port as Europe's hydrogen hub
  • Achieved modal shift with rail and barge share increasing while truck traffic decreased
  • Implemented zero-accident safety program across port operations


Parallaxe

Our Approach

We structured the transformation through eight interconnected project streams encompassing 80 sub-projects. Our partnership began by building a strategic roadmap based on the port’s vision, then developing a forward-thinking organization-wide design.

We established and coached an internal transition team to promote workforce implementation. The ecosystem was built across three levels: strategy, projects and governance. Structured stakeholder dialogue and the establishment of an enterprise PMO function creation ensured alignment.

We supported lighthouse project development to demonstrate tangible results. The program progressed through distinct phases: formulation of mission and strategic priorities, establishment of the transformation program and preparation for a merger.

This comprehensive approach enabled the simultaneous advancement of operational excellence initiatives, sustainability projects and organizational capability building.

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Parallaxe

Facing Similar Port Infrastructure Challenges?

  • Managing complex ecosystems while pursuing ambitious, aggressive sustainability targets
  • Transforming established operations without disrupting critical throughput
  • Building partnerships that deliver both environmental and operational excellence

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