• Rotterdam boasts the largest port in the European Union;
• The Port of Rotterdam is the fourth-largest port in the world;
• Rotterdam is the logistics hub for the whole of Europe;
• The Rotterdam regions offers excellent office location at reasonable prices;
• Rotterdam is home to a large student population, attending its first-rate university and colleges

The city of Rotterdam can be found in the Dutch province of South Holland, situated in the west of the Netherlands. The city is the second-largest in the country and has a population of 606.160 (2010). The Greater Rotterdam Area, locally known as the Rijnmond Region, has about 1.3 million residents. In turn, the Rijnmond Region is the southern part of the Randstad – the sixth-largest metropolitan area in Europe, with a population of 6.7 million.

Rotterdam is well connected to a vast network of international highways, railroads and airports. The Rotterdam-The Hague Airport is the most important regional airport in the Netherlands and enjoys excellent connection with the major European hubs. Moreover, it offers excellent facilities for private jets and is open for business jet flights around the clock.

The nearest international airport serving Rotterdam is Amsterdam International Airport, which is just a 45-minute car drive away. Alternatively, travelers can use the new high-speed rail service (Fyra) between Schiphol and Rotterdam, which reduces travel time to only 26 minutes. The same high-speed rail service also provides comfortable and swift transport to the other major European cities such as Brussels, Paris, Frankfurt.

The City of Rotterdam has been particularly successful in attracting direct foreign investment over the past decade and is now home to over 1,000 foreign-owned businesses. As the creation of the RIA underlines, Rotterdam is going to treble its efforts to bring in foreign business in the coming years. Find out why companies like Unilever Benelux, Bank of China, Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd. have already invested in Rotterdam:

Peter ten Kulve, Chairman of the Management Board of Unilever Benelux: 'Foreigners and the Dutch will both experience the no-nonsense, can-do character of the city.'

Dongkui Fang, General Manager of the Rotterdam branch of the Bank of China: 'Rotterdam has a very good business environment and its local government is business friendly. For that reason, and because of Rotterdam's geographical location, many multinational and medium-sized Chinese companies are located in Rotterdam.'

James Lee, General Manager of Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. Ltd.: 'Whenever I need assistance I never hesitate to immediately contact the Expat Desk. I can feel accomplishment due to their kind and positive assistance, always.'

The Rotterdam Investment Agency is able to support your company by providing the following services, at no cost to your company:

• Arranging fact-finding visits to Rotterdam
• Red-carpet treatment
• Assistance with obtaining visas and permits using our dedicated Expat Desk
• Advice on tax, legal and other financial matters relating to setting up a new business in Rotterdam
• Advice on the cultural differences between your own country and the Netherlands
• List of suitable office, industrial and warehouse sites
• Advice on site selection and housing
• Introductions to key business and government contacts
• Introductions to (international) schools
• Introductions to local, national and international networks and organizations

It must be your intention to establish economic activities (independently or as a joint venture) in Rotterdam itself (could be anything from manufacturing operations to research activities) that wi ll also create employment in the Greater Rotterdam Area.

• Companies in the Port and Industrial Cluster;
• Companies in the Creative Cluster;
• Companies in the Medical and Care Cluster;
• Companies in the Business-to-Business Cluster

In order to encourage business investment, Rotterdam is actively stimulating the construction of broadband networks in various city districts including special ICT sections. Indeed, many telecom providers have set up their offices in Rotterdam, some of which with their own technical facilities. On top of that will come the realization of a citywide fiberglass network, which is causing some temporary inconvenience, but will turn out to be a great boon to businesses operating in Rotterdam. Local government is also taking the lead in stimulating e-usage and e-platforms for both private and business use. What is more, Rotterdam’s position as Europe’s logistics hub has turned it into an ideal home basis and testing ground for companies specializing in logistics software development.