Coen de Vries

Architectural Engineering

Repurposing the port: Transforming a former oil-related port area to a mixed-use neighborhood

Living and working in the future industrial heritage of ‘oilscapes', former oil-related port areas with iconic landscapes, buildings and constructions – ‘Repurposing the Port’ demonstrates that the aforementioned is a legitimate possibility. The project, located in Amsterdam's Petroleumhaven – symbolically being the Netherlands’ first oil-related port – proposes a circular transformation of this area. By doing so, the project responds to the ever-increasing demand and growth of urban areas, while also restoring the once-intimate link between port and city.

Reusing the oil industry's cylindrical icons, aboveground steel storage tanks (ASTs), saves both the embodied CO2 and the industrial heritage value and urban qualities of these structures. The project even becomes CO2-negative by incorporating a timber construction grid and a modular, self-buildable infill.

A strategic phasing and a robust urban toolbox ensure that this extension of Amsterdam will soon be a pioneering project, serving as a ‘handshake’ between port and city.