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Deploying circular economy in port environments
Circular Ports
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Circular Ports

PROGRAMME 2021-2027
priority
3 Climate-neutral societies
objective
3.1 Circular economy
Project type
Core Project
Implementation
March 2025 - February 2028
Technical details

Circular Ports

In the project Circular Ports, Baltic Sea ports explore symbiosis opportunities within port environments for waste reduction and material reuse, establishing viable circular business models.
Project summary

Circular Ports – Deploying Circular Economy in Port Environments

Circular Ports advances the transition from linear to circular economic systems in port environments by piloting and demonstrating practical circular solutions and creating frameworks that enable replication and scaling up across the Baltic Sea Region. Ports are complex hubs where logistics, industry, waste management, energy systems and often urban activities intersect. This makes them highly relevant for advancing circular economy approaches that reduce waste, increase resource efficiency and support climate neutrality.

The project fosters collaboration between port authorities, enterprises, waste management actors and local public authorities to identify synergies, develop circular business practices and encourage systemic change in port communities. By strengthening cooperation between stakeholders operating in close proximity, Circular Ports helps unlock the potential of industrial symbiosis and closed material loops in port environments.

Circular Ports contributes to the objectives of the European Green Deal and the EU Circular Economy Action Plan, and supports the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region, particularly Policy Area Transport and Policy Area Ship. By promoting circular practices in ports, the project helps reduce emissions, improve resource management and strengthen sustainable logistics and industrial operations.

Objectives

The project works towards:

  • Identifying synergies between industries and actors in port areas and fostering industrial symbiosis.
  • Exploring and testing circular business cases that support viable circular economy strategies.
  • Improving waste management practices together with waste disposal companies, including better separation, recycling and utilisation of waste streams.
  • Encouraging systemic change in port communities towards more sustainable production and consumption patterns.
  • Assessing regulatory frameworks and identifying ways to better enable circular economy initiatives in port environments.
  • Engaging port stakeholders through communication and cooperation activities to support the uptake of circular practices.
Regulatory Sandboxes

A hallmark of the project is the development of regulatory sandboxes for circular initiatives in port environments. A regulatory sandbox is a structured framework that enables experimentation with new technologies, services, products or approaches in real-life settings, within existing regulatory structures.

These sandboxes allow partners to test circular economy solutions in the complex operational context of ports, where maritime, logistics, industrial and urban activities meet. They support learning about regulatory barriers and opportunities and provide guidance for creating more enabling conditions for circularity in ports.

Pilot Activities

The project implements six pilots, each addressing locally relevant circular economy challenges and opportunities:

  • Aalborg: Construction and building materials
  • Hamburg: Battery recycling and metal scrap
  • Lappeenranta: Identification of material flows and creation of industrial symbioses
  • Tallinn: Carbon capture and waste utilisation
  • Norrköping: New waste streams for recycling
  • GdaÅ„sk: Rubber and film recycling

Each pilot operates within a locally developed regulatory sandbox and demonstrates how circular solutions can be embedded in real port operations.

Procurement Strategies

Circular Ports also develops guidance on procurement as a lever for circular transformation, distinguishing between three approaches:

  • Classical procurement: Focus on lowest price and short-term cost efficiency.
  • Green procurement: Focus on reducing environmental impacts such as energy use, emissions and material consumption.
  • Circular procurement: Focus on minimising waste, extending product lifetimes and preserving the value of materials through lifecycle thinking.

The guidance does not provide a fixed checklist but offers elements that organisations can use to design procurement strategies adapted to their own context and level of ambition.

A Toolbox to deploy CE strategies

Circular Ports will produce a Circular Economy Toolbox to support ports and their stakeholders in advancing circular economy practices and transferring successful approaches across the Baltic Sea Region.

Expected Impact

Through practical pilots, regulatory experimentation and stakeholder collaboration, Circular Ports will:

  • Strengthen circular economy implementation in port environments.
  • Reduce waste and emissions linked to port-related activities.
  • Support new circular business opportunities and cooperation models.
  • Enable replication of successful approaches in other ports across the Baltic Sea Region.
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Budgets

Circular Ports
in numbers.
  • 4.15
    Million
    Total
  • 3.32
    Million
    Erdf
  • 0.00
    Million
    Norway

Top news

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Regulatory sandboxes – creating space for circular innovation in ports
Ports are complex environments where logistics, industry, waste management and transport intersect. ...
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46 Benefitting organisations 1 Solution(s) in preparation 1 Solution(s) plannedfor use / upscale 6 Pilotactivities 37 Organisationsin the project

Circular Ports
in numbers.

  • 53.54437979.9940152
  • 53.51826239.9597813
  • 53.54496939.9955278
  • 61.057072428.1917602
  • 60.450661322.2764768
  • 61.066279628.0920458
  • 59.444880924.7608173
  • 59.403968624.7334188
  • 57.04969410.046656
  • 57.0546891875350759.935416651197642
  • 57.689065311.9761647
  • 58.62469294502907516.228518739111706
  • 54.4034778098275218.565759412785617
  • 50.070019321.4505396
  • 59.444880924.7608173
  • 58.395705915.5730255
  • 53.46350289.9697186

Project partners

Lead partnerPort of Hamburg Marketing
  • Town
    Hamburg
  • Region
  • Country
    Germany
  • Region
    Hamburg
Total partner budget
593,900.00
EMR European Metal Recycling GmbH
  • Town
    Hamburg
  • Region
  • Country
    Germany
  • Region
    Hamburg
Total partner budget
248,500.00
Hamburg Port Authority
  • Town
    Hamburg
  • Region
  • Country
    Germany
  • Region
    Hamburg
Total partner budget
94,000.00
City of Lappeenranta
  • Town
    Lappeenranta
  • Region
  • Country
    Finland
  • Region
    Etelä-Karjala
Total partner budget
267,401.60
Centrum Balticum Foundation
  • Town
    TURKU
  • Region
  • Country
    Finland
  • Region
    Varsinais-Suomi
Total partner budget
254,960.00
LAB University of Applied Sciences Ltd.
  • Town
    Lappeenranta
  • Region
  • Country
    Finland
  • Region
    Etelä-Karjala
Total partner budget
249,639.60
Port of Tallinn
  • Town
    Tallinn
  • Region
  • Country
    Estonia
  • Region
    Põhja-Eesti
Total partner budget
200,656.80
Enefit Green AS
  • Town
    Tallinn
  • Region
  • Country
    Estonia
  • Region
    Põhja-Eesti
Total partner budget
195,501.00
Port of Aalborg R&D
  • Town
    Aalborg Øst
  • Region
  • Country
    Denmark
  • Region
    Nordjylland
Total partner budget
359,280.19
Climate Alliance, Aalborg, Aalborg Municipality
  • Town
    Nørresundby
  • Region
  • Country
    Denmark
  • Region
    Nordjylland
Total partner budget
149,580.00
RISE Research Institutes of Sweden AB
  • Town
    Göteborg
  • Region
  • Country
    Sweden
  • Region
    Norrbottens län
Total partner budget
211,076.00
Port of Norrköping
  • Town
    Norrköping
  • Region
  • Country
    Sweden
  • Region
    Östergötlands län
Total partner budget
169,557.00
University of Gdansk
  • Town
    Gdańsk
  • Region
  • Country
    Poland
  • Region
    Trójmiejski
Total partner budget
366,625.00
Metkom Ltd
  • Town
    Debica
  • Region
  • Country
    Poland
  • Region
    Tarnobrzeski
Total partner budget
217,100.00
Baltic Ports Organization
  • Town
    Tallinn
  • Region
  • Country
    Estonia
  • Region
    Põhja-Eesti
Total partner budget
135,004.00
The Swedish National Road and Transport Research Institute (VTI)
  • Town
    Linköping
  • Region
  • Country
    Sweden
  • Region
    Östergötlands län
Total partner budget
155,250.00
Hamburg University of Technology
  • Town
    Hamburg
  • Region
  • Country
    Germany
  • Region
    Hamburg
Total partner budget
284,100.00

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