Port of Tilbury, London’s major port, scooped the Rail Freight and Logistics Excellence industry accolade at this year’s Rail Business Awards at a ceremony on 21 February 2019 in central London. The Port was shortlisted for its “Reinvigorated rail freight” offering, alongside two other entries – Colas Rail & Tarmac and GB Railfreight – in the company’s inaugural entry.

Over the past two years, the Port has revived its rail freight offering by introducing regular intermodal services to The Midlands, North West and Scotland; creating a dedicated bulk rail terminal, which has subsequently been expanded to facilitate growing traffic; and establishing a rail connection to the recently consented 152-acre deep-water port terminal, known as Tilbury2.

With three rail terminals in the port and the Essex Thameside rail corridor already accounting for approximately 10% of the UK’s rail freight traffic, the Port is well positioned to provide sustainable and cost effective logistic solutions for customers.

“It’s great to receive this industry recognition acknowledging our success in reviving Tilbury’s rail offering”, Peter Ward, Commercial Director at the Port of Tilbury said.

He added: “Since setting our rail freight strategy two years ago and committing significant funds to support investment in new infrastructure and equipment to aid our overhaul, Tilbury has gone from strength-to-strength, securing new and growing intermodal and bulk traffic flows.

“We remain committed to providing sustainable, multi-modal and cost effective logistics solutions to support our customers’ growth and supply chain competitiveness. Our success is founded on the strong partnerships we have formed with URM, FM Conway, Tesco, Samskip, ECS, JF Hillebrand, Eddie Stobart Logistics, Victa Railfreight and DB Cargo UK. This award is testament to that continuing positive collaboration.”

– ends –

Forth Ports Group receives planning consent for new port on the River Thames

20 February 2019

The Port of Tilbury, the UK’s fastest growing port, has today (20 February 2019) received development consent from the Secretary of State for Transport to build Tilbury2 – a new multimillion pound port terminal adjacent to the current 930 acre site in Thurrock, on the outskirts of Greater London.

With construction scheduled to commence in a matter of weeks, the privately funded port, Tilbury2, will be built on a site covering in excess of 150 acres, which was part of the location of the former Tilbury Power Station. When operational in Spring 2020, Tilbury2 will be the UK’s largest unaccompanied ferry port and the country’s biggest construction processing hub, with AEO-trusted trader status.

Expansion is essential for the Port of Tilbury to cope with rising demand for construction materials and aggregates from Britain’s construction sector, imported and exported cars, as well as an increase in commercial ferry traffic, which carries consumer goods, perishables (food and drink) and steel between Europe and the UK.

Construction of the port, which will include a new rail and road connection, deep water jetty and pontoon, will bring the project cost to in excess of £200 million. The tender process for a contractor to complete this build has been completed and an announcement will be made shortly.

Tilbury2 will comprise:
• A roll on/roll off ferry terminal for importing and exporting containers and trailers to northern Europe, in partnership with P&O Ferries
• A facility for importing, processing, manufacturing and distributing construction materials
• A strategic rail terminal which can accommodate the longest freight trains of 775m
• Storage areas for a variety of goods, including exported and imported cars.

Tilbury2 is central to the Port of Tilbury’s £1billion investment programme during 2012-20. Tilbury has doubled the size of its business in the past 10 years and is projected to double the volume of cargo across the quay (from 16 million to 32 million tonnes) and increase direct employment (from 3,500 to 12,000 jobs) over the next 10-15 years.

Charles Hammond, Chief Executive of Forth Ports Group (owner of the Port of Tilbury), said: “This is great news for the UK at a time when the country needs its ports more than ever before. Tilbury2 will deliver much needed port capacity to support businesses importing and exporting to and from Europe and the rest of the world. The terminal will be fit-for-purpose for the UK’s departure from the European Union, utilising the latest technology and streamlined border processes, in support of continued market demand created by business growth.

“By 2020, £1billion will have been invested in Tilbury’s expansion plans, including Tilbury2 and the 55-acre London Development Park, with the full backing of our shareholders.”

20 February 2019 – ends-

Metal recycling, decommissioning and steel tubulars specialist, John Lawrie Group, is set to expand its operations in Scotland after agreeing a multi-million pound deal to develop a new site at the Port of Dundee.

The Aberdeen-headquartered company has reached an agreement with Forth Ports to establish a new metal recycling and decommissioning base at the Port. Both organisations will invest in the project, which will see an existing two-acre site at the city port redeveloped to create a new purpose-built concrete pad. The site will support the existing supply chain in Dundee in delivering oil and gas and decommissioning projects in the city.

A combined investment of around £5million is being made by both businesses in the development, which covers construction costs, the long-term lease of the site and the purchase of plant and equipment. John Lawrie Group will use the site to dismantle redundant offshore infrastructure brought ashore during oil and gas decommissioning projects and also for metal processing operations.

Scheduled to be up and running in early 2020, the facility will be operated by John Lawrie Group’s metals division. At launch, up to 10 new full-time jobs will be created, with the prospect of further posts being added as operations at the site develop.

John Lawrie Group is one of the country’s leading metal recycling companies, annually processing around 200,000 tonnes of metal. The firm is committed to maximising the reuse and recycling of redundant offshore materials and structures, and has been involved in the decommissioning sector for over 20 years. During that time it has handled piece small items from repair and modification projects, to piece large items brought ashore as part of entire platform or field decommissioning programmes.

John Lawrie Group, which operates metal recycling facilities in Aberdeen, Montrose, Evanton near Invergordon and Lerwick on Shetland, has previously carried out decommissioning work at the Port of Dundee. In 2015, it dismantled a 500-tonne offshore module at the port, with the materials then being transported to the firm’s Aberdeen metal recycling facility where the redundant North Sea structure was fully processed and recycled.

The firm achieves reuse and recycling rates of around 98 per cent on decommissioning projects. That commitment to reuse and recycling – which in turn promotes the circular economy – led to John Lawrie Group winning the circular economy award at the 2017 VIBES – Scottish Environment Business Awards.

Dave Weston, John Lawrie Metals managing director, said: “This is a significant investment for John Lawrie Group and comes 12 months after we acquired a metal recycling facility on Shetland. It underlines our commitment to support the oil and gas decommissioning sector and forms part of our long-term strategy to develop John Lawrie Group’s operations across the country. Operating facilities in close proximity to Scotland’s major ports also acknowledges the strategic importance we see them continuing to play as part of the country’s infrastructure.

“Over the coming 12 months we will be working closely with all of the relevant authorities and licensing bodies as we finalise plans for this development in Dundee. Our aim is to maximise the amount of materials that are reused and recycled, in order to minimise the volume of waste sent to landfill, helping to create a greener and more sustainable economy.”

Led by Forth Ports and public-private partnership, Dundeecom, work is underway to position Dundee as an integrated hub for North Sea oil and gas decommissioning work. Boasting deep-water berths and a strategic east coast location, it is hoped Dundee will secure a sizeable portion of the £15.3billion that is forecast to be spent on decommissioning oil and gas infrastructure from the UK Continental Shelf over the next decade.

Commenting on the Dundee development, David Webster, Forth Ports’ Senior Port Manager for Dundee and Leith, said: “This is a major milestone in Forth Ports’ strategy to develop a full service oil and gas decommissioning hub here at the Port of Dundee.

“We are excited to be working with John Lawrie Group to develop this new decommissioning facility. We have worked closely together on a number of projects and the company’s commitment to reuse and recycling and its strong track record is evident. The opening of the facility in early 2020 will be a very visible sign of the Port of Dundee’s ambition to support the North Sea oil and gas decommissioning sector.”

Callum Falconer, CEO of Dundeecom, added: “John Lawrie Group is a long-established and highly regarded company that has an extensive track record of innovative thinking in oil and gas decommissioning. It is great to welcome the company to Dundee on a permanent basis, where it will complement the existing supply chain. John Lawrie Group’s decision to locate here is a real vote of confidence for the city as it seeks to continue to diversify its economy and establish itself as an important decom hub.”

Established in Aberdeen as a metal merchant, John Lawrie Group now offers a diverse range of industrial services across its metals, tubulars and decom divisions. The firm specialises in metal recycling and reprocessing, the supply of new and used steel tubulars, and the provision of industrial and oilfield decommissioning services. John Lawrie Group employs an 80-strong workforce across operations in the UK, America and Europe. In 2017, John Lawrie Group was acquired by its management in partnership with Rubicon Partners, a leading industrial investor, and principal investment firm Grovepoint.