About Us
The Gateway to Ireland
Belfast Harbour is a thriving Trust Port, the engine of Northern Ireland’s economy and a gateway to its future. We handle 70% of
NI’s seaborne trade and 25% of seaborne trade for the entire island of Ireland. We serve Belfast and all sub-regions in Northern Ireland by facilitating the steady flow of trade and goods.
A major contributor to the economy in Northern Ireland, Belfast Harbour Commissioners has played a key role in the development and progress of the city and region since its inception in 1847.
As a future-facing organisation, we continue to grow, embracing new technologies and opportunities for development. We are now the busiest cruise port on the island of Ireland, and the second busiest in the UK.
advancing regional prosperity
As well as its busy port operations, Belfast Harbour is home to high-quality commercial and residential real estate, and a diverse community of businesses in sectors such as financial and IT services, R&D, film production, engineering, and aerospace manufacturing, employing more than 27,000 people.
Over the past decade, we have invested more than £374 million in capital projects. Our new 2025-29 strategy – entitled ‘Advance Regional Prosperity – will deliver a £313m programme of investment in port and estate, including a £90m deepwater quay to enable us to expand our cruise tourism offering, and facilitate deployment of next generation offshore windfarms.
Underpinning everything is our commitment to becoming a net zero organisation, and already we are on target to meet our targets ahead of our 2030 goals.
