Cash and cash equivalents - Additional Information (Details)	12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2019	Dec. 31, 2018
Subclassifications of assets, liabilities and equities [abstract]
Maturity of bank deposits	8 days	6 days

Short-Term Deposits, Classified As Cash Equivalents, Average Maturity

No definition available.

Name:	eurn_ShortTermDepositsClassifiedAsCashEquivalentsAverageMaturity
Namespace Prefix:	eurn_
Data Type:	xbrli:durationItemType
Balance Type:	na
Period Type:	duration