Port congestion in the North Sea

In recent months, global port congestion is responsible for important delays in container shipping, thus impacting international trade and the global supply chain. This is now also affecting the ports of the North Sea, where ships cannot be loaded nor unloaded. According to media reports, almost 2 per cent of global cargo capacity is currently stuck off the ports of Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands. 

The combined use of radar and optical data acquired by Copernicus satellites provides useful information that can be applied to maritime surveillance activities around the world.