The staff of the Section is involved in the under-graduate and post-graduate education, both by giving lectures and by supervising bachelor and master theses. The Section’s scientific knowledge base combined with new insights gained by scientific and practical research, provide the basis for state of the art lectures. The Section aims to attract students that want to combine theoretical economic knowledge with the applied field of ports and port-related logistics.

The  Port Economics staff is involved in several courses concerning transport, port and regional economics. Currently there are three courses within the master Urban, Port and transport Economics:

For detailed information on master courses and the possibility to follow these courses please contact the Erasmus University.

Port Economics

Goals

In the lectures ‘essentials’ of port economics are discussed, such as the role of ports in transport networks, port competition, the role of port authorities, port planning and the hinterland of ports. These issues are explored more in detail, with group assignments, guest lectures and presentations.

Content

A large variety of economic activities take place in seaports. The core activity of seaports is its role as node in transport chains. The position of a port as such a node is analysed first. Ports have a place in maritime networks and serve a certain hinterland. Second, a variety of commodities are handled in seaports. Each commodity is a specific market, with specific market conditions. The market characteristics of the most important commodities (in volume throughput) are discussed. Third, port competition of seaports is discussed. Issues like regulations, institutional structures, the structure of logistics chains are discussed.  Fourth, the issue of port planning and forecasting of cargo throughput is discussed.

Apart from transport nodes, ports are also clusters of economic activities, including activities such as oil refining, basic chemicals production, grain trading etc. Activities included in port clusters are discussed, followed by an analysis of the competitiveness of port clusters. Finally, attention is given the entrepreneurship and conflicting interests in seaports.

Seminar advanced Port Economics

Goals

The goal of this course is providing students with an overview of the most important developments in the port and transport sector and to teach students research skills and methods necessary for them to do in depth analysis of these developments. Both goals will prepare to students for their Masters-thesis.   At the end of this course students are able to do the following:

Activities

The seminar includes the following activities:

Content

Ports operate in a highly dynamic and international context. Many factors affect the development, management and competitive performance of ports. Processes such as globalisation, privatization, technological changes and functional integration have a profound impact on ports. In addition, many agents and stakeholders such as shippers, manufacturers, transport intermediaries, governments, branch associations, and environmentalists are involved in these processes. These actors furthermore operate at different spatial scales (local, regional, national, global), have different and often conflicting interests, and hold different degrees of power. In the course Advanced Port Economics, students will be confronted with these issues and have to deal with questions such as how are ports evolving within a dynamic international context and what are the strategies and interests of the actors involved?     

Economics of the Transport Firm

Goal

The purpose of this course is to introduce students to economic aspects of the transport and logistic industry. At the end of the course students must have the ability to value main trends and developments with respect to transport markets in general and the effects they have on the individual firm.

Structure

Students develop their knowledge by attending lectures, alternated with relevant and actual business cases.

Content

In this course the unit of analysis is the individual transport or logistics firm. During the course economic approaches like market analysis, organization economics, strategy making, financial decision making and supply chain economics are applied within the various transport and logistics sectors.

Other education

Contribution to IHE Port Management Program. This program for port managers from developing countries consists of a study trip, lectures on technical and port design issues and lectures on port economics and management, provided by the Section Port Economics. 

Contribution to MEL, International Post Academic Master Course in Maritime Economics and Logistics, given at Erasmus University.