"We provide our customers with customized solutions. For a chemical company, for example, we can not only transport the products, but also add value by packaging, grinding or compounding them. We also build our own specialist warehouses. This enables us to organize them as efficiently as possible for our customers. This allows us to unburden our customers. In this way they can focus completely on their own primary process.

Catoon Natie stays with the times

The company was founded in 1854, but has no trouble moving with the times. "We are constantly looking at what our customers need. For example, we focus on niche markets, including bulk and liquid transports, and we take over parts of the production process. 

But we also focus on sustainability. We have recently renewed our vehicle fleet. All our trucks meet the Euro 6 standard. And our warehouses are equipped with solar panels. As a result, our forklifts run on electricity that we generate ourselves."  

Cotton Natie and Dutch-Limburg: a perfect match

Since 2013, Katoen Natie has established itself in Dutch-Limburg. And in 2015 Katoen Natie took over the Limburg transport company Langen. But why actually Dutch-Limburg? Kristof explains, "We are mainly located in Antwerp. But the expansion possibilities there are limited and the traffic congestion problem is increasing strongly. In Dutch Limburg we now have a branch in Born, for example. The water connection between Antwerp, Rotterdam and Born is excellent. This allows us to avoid the roads around Antwerp. We can still reach our customers quickly and thus create the ideal gateway to the east." 

The Dutch-Limburg market is also perfect for Katoen Natie. "We have 14 hectares of land on the Chemelot site. We are big in the chemical industry. By establishing ourselves on this site, we can help our existing customers even better and support their production even better. And, of course, it also makes us more attractive to new customers."

"The cooperation with LIOF was fast and accurate. Bert knows and manages his files very well."  

LIOF helped Katoen Natie to settle in Dutch Limburg

Bert Roona, Foreign Investment Manager at LIOF, introduced Katoen Natie to Dutch-Limburg. Kristof and Marc: "Bert brought us into contact with the local authorities and other important organizations in Dutch Limburg. In this way, we quickly learned which laws and regulations we had to comply with."

Also Bert says: "Katoen Natie is an important player in Dutch-Limburg in the field of chemistry and logistics. And all that in a sustainable way. Sustainability is an important theme for LIOF. It is part of the major social challenges that we face regionally, but also nationally and internationally. Katoen Natie contributes to the social impact that we want to make. But Katoen Natie is also an important economic player in and outside of Dutch Limburg. That is why we think it is important for the company to become better known in the region."

"Connections are necessary"

Want to expand your business into new territory? Then Kristof has a tip: "It is important to build up contacts. For example with local governments and other companies. Each area has its own culture, rules and laws. The better you know these, the better you can establish yourself as a company."

A valuable addition for Dutch Limburg

The support of LIOF is successful, because Katoen Natie is getting more face in the province. Marc says: "We show companies in the area what we have to offer. And they are often pleasantly surprised. We can in fact do much more than they expected of us beforehand. I notice that we are getting a bigger name in Dutch Limburg because of this. And I expect that this will only increase in the coming years.