EMERGENCY, DEVELOPMENT, FUTURE OF MARINE CONTAINER TERMINALS

Abstract

In today's dynamically changing and risky business environment, maritime container terminals are becoming increasingly important. This is because they are a connecting link in the international exchange of goods and through them close economic ties are established between individual countries, which is contributed to by the multimodal characteristics of container transport. Maritime container terminals are part of the transport and logistics chain, providing the connection between individual modes of transport. They have complex and diverse faces, dictated by the fact that container terminals themselves are not only port hubs, what is more, they are high-tech "smart factories" in which individual logistics processes and operations are automated and digitalized. This turns them into high-tech logistics hubs that function as intelligent, automated and connected systems. In parallel, a number of factors and risks have a direct impact on their construction and development. Among them, of primary importance are the geographical and depth configuration of the ports, competition, financial capabilities, environmental requirements for environmental impact, etc. A number of external factors provoked by pandemic circumstances (Covid-19), special military operations (SVO in Ukraine), piracy and other similar manifestations (insecurity in the Red Sea), etc., which have a negative impact on the security, volume, duration of container sea transport and container terminals, should not be ignored. And from here comes the direct reflection of their effectiveness. Against the background of the above, the author's scientific research is provoked by the need to study the evolution and future of maritime container terminals by distinguishing the individual stages in their historical development in a dynamically changing business environment and security environment, provoked by the geopolitical situation in individual maritime regions, in particular - the Black Sea region. The research in this publication, in addition to a general retrospective aspect, is also focused on a regional one, with an emphasis on the Bulgarian ports of Varna and Burgas, Romania and Turkey, as countries of the Black Sea basin, revealing the strengths, risks and threats, and opportunities for future development of the Bulgarian ports and in particular of the sea container terminals. And this is the goal of the author's scientific research as part of a larger-scale future study.of the Black Sea basin. And this is the goal of the author's scientific research as part of a larger-scale future study