According to multiple foreign media reports, at around 11:30 a.m. local time on August 13, an explosion occurred at an oil product storage facility in the industrial area of the Port of Rotterdam, Europe's largest port, killing one person and injuring six others.

A spokesperson for Gunvor Energy, a major energy commodity trading company, said the accident took place during maintenance work on one of the company's storage tanks. According to Dutch broadcaster NOS, a maintenance crew was inspecting pipelines in the area at the time of the incident.

Police said a cordon has been set up at the scene and investigators have been deployed to determine the cause of the explosion. In a post on social media, police stated that their preliminary assessment "tentatively points to a workplace accident," but did not disclose further details. There is currently no indication of sabotage, though all possibilities remain under investigation.

According to a Port of Rotterdam notification, a severe power outage occurred in another part of the port, where a transformer caught fire for reasons unknown. Several companies suspended operations and evacuated staff as a result.

By mid-afternoon, power had been fully restored in the area, which is home to multiple oil and gas companies. Emergency services later said that, following checks, no connection had been found between the power outage and the earlier explosion.

The Port of Rotterdam is not only Europe's largest port but also a key hub for the import and storage of crude oil and fuels. In addition to other refineries, it hosts Europe's largest refinery—Shell's Pernis facility, with a capacity of 404,000 barrels per day—as well as refining operations run by BP, ExxonMobil, and Vitol.

A Port of Rotterdam spokesperson said the LNG terminal was not affected by the blast. However, data from Europe's gas transmission network showed a brief drop in gas send-out from the Gate LNG terminal in Rotterdam, followed by unstable flows. It remains unclear whether this was related to the explosion or caused by the unrelated power outage elsewhere in the port.