Evergem, Belgium: Northfreeze, now part of Cube Cold, is building a new cold store in Evergem, one of its three locations within North Sea Port. The cold store is planned to be operational by the first quarter of 2025.
The greenfield project will grow Northfreeze’s storage capacity in Evergem by 54,000 pallets, doubling the total in North Sea Port. Fred Compeer, head of sales and network development, Northfreeze, said: “For cold storage and temperature-controlled activities, North Sea Port offers a combination of factors that is very attractive to customers.”
“We have become a mid-size operator by European standards. Our ambition is not to become the biggest player on the pitch, but we definitely want to have a leading position. What we aim for is to create a strong European-wide network that offers our clients the integrated service they need. We only make acquisitions that fit into this perspective,” Compeer said.
Northfreeze, now Cube Cold Belgium, operates three sites in North Sea Port Ghent, plus two smaller ones in Westerlo and Brugge. Collectively, these locations can store 76,000 pallets (51,000 frozen). The bulk of this capacity (55,000 pallets) is in Evergem, where the company is active at two locations: in the industrial zone of Durmakker (along the ring canal for inland navigation around Ghent) and on the site of Nortraffic in De Nest (close to the sea canal to Terneuzen).
The new cold store in Evergem will increase Northfreeze’s capacity by an additional 54,000 pallets, doubling the current score in North Sea Port. 47,000 positions will be dedicated to frozen storage with a temperature regime of -20°C and 7,000 positions for chilled or controlled ambient storage, depending on the customers’ needs. 18,000 pallet places for ambient storage have recently been added to the capacity on the Evergem-Rieme site.
The new warehouse is one of Cube Cold’s largest current investments, with other expansions planned or commissioned to accommodate growing demand in the Netherlands and the UK, as well as in Brugge and Westerlo.
The new warehouse will be built next to Nortraffic at the De Nest site, where space is still available, unlike at the two sites in Durmakker, which do not have additional land for expansion. The building has been specially designed to reduce the operational carbon footprint, with solar panels on the roof – and possibly a wind turbine – to supply part of the energy needed for cooling.
Cube Cold focuses on the acquisition and development of existing small to medium-sized operators and facilities across strategic areas. It started with the takeover of three companies in early 2022: Frigo Breda in the Netherlands, Northfreeze in Belgium, and Pulleyn in the United Kingdom. This year, two Italian companies, Fridock and FrigoCaserta, and one British company, JR Harding & Sons, have been added to the network. That network now covers 18 sites that with 250,000 pallet place.
