New berth will expand capacity by a third at Thames terminal. DP World is to begin construction of the fourth berth at London Gateway as it seeks to take advantage of the terminal’s freeport status to add capacity to the UK supply chain.
The £300m ($414.9m) project is due to begin next month and is set to increase capacity at the facility by a third when it is completed in 2023.
The investment “will give London Gateway more capacity to handle the world’s largest vessels than any other port in the country,” said DP World chairman Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem.
“DP World plans to be at the heart of Britain’s trading future and this investment shows that we have the ambition and the resources to boost growth, support businesses, create jobs and improve living standards.”
London Gateway is part of the Thames Freeport initiative, along with the Ford Motor Co, Port of Tilbury and other local businesses. Thames Freeport is one of eight special economic zones announced by the UK government in March 2021, which will benefit from reduced red tape.
“Our new freeports will create national hubs of trade, innovation and commerce, and attract more investment to regenerate communities and level up the UK,” said UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak.
“Bringing ports and business together to invest in their regions is crucial to the Freeports success story.”
London Gateway is the second-largest container terminal in the UK, with a throughput of 1.6m teu in 2020. In the first half of this year, it recorded a 23% growth to 888,000 teu, the highest-ever recorded in a six-month period.
Source: Lloyd’s
