Effective January 1, 2025, Berte Simons has been appointed Chief Operating Officer (COO) of the Port of Rotterdam Authority N.V. by the shareholders. This means she joins the Executive Board and succeeds Boudewijn Siemons, who was appointed CEO and interim COO in February 2024. From January 1, 2025, the Port Authority’s Executive Board will consist of CEO Boudewijn Siemons, CFO Vivienne de Leeuw and COO Berte Simons.
The Port Authority shareholders, the municipality of Rotterdam and the Dutch national government, appointed Berte Simons for four years, on the recommendation of the Supervisory Board.
“The Supervisory Board is pleased that Berte Simons wants to bring her extensive expertise as a marine engineer to the Port Authority,” said Chair of the Supervisory Board Koos Timmermans. “She brings with her international experience in leading large-scale and complex infrastructure projects in ports and industrial areas, the knowledge and experience we need for a successful and coordinated transition to a fossil-free and circular port.”
Simons’ background
After completing her training as a maritime officer, Berte Simons began her career in 2003 as a policy officer at North Sea Port, where she worked until 2006. From 2006 to 2021, Berte held various management positions at international consulting and engineering firm Royal HaskoningDHV, where she managed international projects in the mining, heavy industry, aviation and maritime sectors. Berte Simons currently works at Energie Beheer Nederland (EBN) as director of the CO2 Storage & Transport Systems business unit. In this position, she is closely involved in the Porthos project, which the Port of Rotterdam Authority is developing together with Gasunie and EBN.
“In the role of COO of the Port Authority, everything comes together for me,” explained Berte Simons. “The port is a place that is constantly changing and connected to the whole world. A place where the activities of industry, logistics and the living environment come together. I look forward to working with colleagues and stakeholders to contribute to the sustainable development of the port in harmony with the environment.”
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