Royal Vopak is the result of a merger between Royal Van Ommeren and Royal Pakhoed. Both companies have a long history of providing various logistics services to the chemical and oil industry. Both businesses have their roots in Rotterdam, the largest petrochemical centre in the world.

Key dates:

1616	Blauwhoed established in 1616 in Amsterdam, by a group of porters who decided to join forces to carry loads from Oost-Indische Compagnie ships to and from the city weighhouse.
1818	Pakhuismeesteren established in 1818 in Rotterdam. Specialized mainly in the loading, unloading and storage of products from the Dutch colonies, such as tea, coffee, spices. Later started to offer storage facilities for oil and oil products, initially in barrels, but as of 1888 also in bulk tanks.
1839	Van Ommeren began its activities as a shipping and forwarding agent. In the ensuing years, interests were built up in deep sea shipping, inland shipping, tank storage, stevedoring companies and distribution centres.
1967	Pakhoed created through the merger of Pakhuismeesteren and Blauwhoed. Main activities: port activities, stevedoring, shipping agencies, freight forwarding, warehousing, oil and chemical storage.
1986	Pakhoed acquired a 35% interest in US company Univar Corporation, parent company of Van Waters & Rogers, the largest chemical distributor in North America.
1990	Van Ommeren decided to concentrate on two core activities: shipping and tank storage.
1999	Royal Vopak formed through the merger of Pakhoed and Van Ommeren.
2002	Split-off Chemical Distribution activities. Vopak continues as tank storage and logistics company