Forth Ports welcomed today’s UK Government funding announcement in support of new and enlarged border infrastructure at the group’s key import/export hubs – Grangemouth, Tilbury and Tilbury2 – totalling £11.7m from the Port Infrastructure Fund.

Contractors are on site and the new border inspection facilities are set to be approved and operational for 1 July 2021.

“This £11.7m funding allocation for new border facilities will complement our existing work with cargo owners, shippers and the wider freight community to ensure that our global gateways stay highly productive and congestion free”, commented Charles Hammond OBE, chief executive of Forts Ports Group.

Early this week, Forth Ports unveiled a suite of tools and dedicated support from the group’s in-house Brexit transition support team (https://forthports.co.uk/forth-ports-group/brexit-ready/

Charles Hammond added: “Harnessing our vast experience and proven performance of handling rest-of-world trade supported by I.T. backed border and booking systems, an extensive network of ferry and container connections, and excellent onward rail and road linkages to the largest domestic consumer markets, we will ensure that goods continue to flow efficiently across our borders and onward to their final destination.

“Supply chains are realigning as they seek greater resilience and a low carbon route close to market, and our ports are ideally placed to support through our investment in infrastructure, market leading turnaround times and capacity for growth.”

Port of Grangemouth

– Scotland’s largest container port handling 30% of Scotland’s export

– streamlined customs and border processes, with AEO trusted trader accreditation

– at the heart of the Central Belt, with enhanced rail connections through an ongoing £3m overhaul of the intermodal terminal to accommodate the longest freight trains in the UK at 775m

– enhanced network shipping connections to northern European’s industrial base through key hubs like Rotterdam, Antwerp and Hamburg, with new calls to the Benelux.

Port of Tilbury

– the fastest growing port in the UK

– streamlined customs and border processes, with AEO trusted trader accreditation

– home to the country’s newest port, Tilbury2. The £250m terminal is the UK’s largest unaccompanied freight ferry terminal operated by P&O Ferries and the biggest construction processing hub

– P&O’s Tilbury-Zeebrugge ro-ro route has recorded 7% annualised growth in the first six months of Tilbury2’s operation

– London Container Terminal at Tilbury has added five new routes in 2020 – stretching from north Africa to Norway – with a 35% increase in European trade this year.

16 December                                                     – ends –

With less than a month until the end of the transition period, Forth Ports’ chief executive, Charles Hammond, issues valuable guidance to shippers, cargo owners and the wider logistics sector using the group’s eight ports along the east coast of the UK. 

The cargo flowing through our ports varies, but the current supply chain planning and the sentiment from our customers is consistent throughout.

Customs, border and security formalities are about to change in two stages on 1 January and 1 July 2021 for intra-European trade flows, but what’s required?

My dedicated in-house Brexit transition team has been at the heart of discussions with the Border Delivery and Protocol Group and all tiers of the government in England and Scotland as the UK prepares for this new dawn.

The team has also been working collaboratively with our customers to provide Brexit flexible solutions.

Harnessing our vast experience and proven performance of handling rest-of-world trade, I.T. backed border and booking systems, an extensive network of ferry and container connections, and onward rail and road strategic linkages to the largest domestic consumer markets, we will ensure that goods continue to efficiently flow across our borders and onward to their final destination.

Our commitment is to ensure our shelves remain stocked, our NHS is supported, our vehicles fuelled, our industrial base fired and our construction industry thrives by keeping the flow through our ports.

Supply chains are realigning as they seek greater resilience and a low carbon route close to market, and our ports are ideally placed to support through our investment in infrastructure, market leading turnaround times and capacity for growth.

We’ve matched that ambition through a £260 million investment programme in our new port, Tilbury2, and an overhaul of our rail terminals at Tilbury and Grangemouth.

This provides for a 775m long rail hub-to-hub low carbon distribution model for the food, drink and perishables sectors – connecting one of Europe’s largest reefer ports to Scotland’s largest container port.

The growth through our brand new freight ferry terminal operated by P&O Ferries, Tilbury2, is testament to early tremors of the ongoing seaquake.

Despite strong pandemic headwinds, our trade routes have grown substantially.

The Tilbury-Zeebrugge ro-ro route has recorded 7% annualised growth in the first six months of Tilbury2’s operation.

While London Container Terminal at Tilbury has added five new routes in 2020 – stretching from north Africa to Norway – with a 35% increase in European trade this year alone.

Grangemouth has enhanced the frequency of its network connections to northern European’s industrial base through key hubs like Rotterdam, Antwerp and Hamburg, with new calls to the Benelux.

Be assured that Forth Ports is ready for Brexit and we have an appetite and capacity to continue supporting growth of core markets.

In these uncertain times, my team has compiled a useful guide of what’s required and when, alongside a guide to key terms, an overview of our services and our global, European and domestic network connections here.

14 December                     – ends-

The investment programme in the redevelopment in the Port of Dundee, totalling £40m, has reached a significant milestone with the start of the latest contract for the construction of a new wharf alongside land upgrades to secure the port’s future in offshore renewable energy and North Sea Oil and Gas projects. This work will augment the development work already completed at the port during 2018/2019.

The work, being delivered by construction and civils engineering company GRAHAM, consists of the construction of a new wharf and the preparation and upgrade of over 15 hectares of land (equivalent to 20 full size football pitches) for the emerging energy transition sector.

The port’s existing Caledon East Warf is being replaced with a new heavy lift quayside that is capable of roll on/off operations as well as conventional lift on/off. Prince Charles Wharf is also undergoing an upgrade after almost 45 years’ service.

Once completed at the end of 2021, the total quayside available at this specific part of the port will be 485m. The quayside, combined with the capital dredging program under way in the River Tay, will allow large semi-submersible vessels (HTV) or wind installation (WIV) to berth in the port.

Dundee is currently the wind turbine hub for the construction of EDF Renewables’ and ESB’s major offshore wind farm, Neart na Gaoithe (NnG).

Commenting on the investment in Dundee, Senior Port Manager, David Webster, said: “This significant investment in the Port of Dundee demonstrates our commitment to bring large-scale renewables and decommissioning projects to Scotland. We are pleased to work with GRAHAM on this project in Dundee following their successful delivery of our new freight ferry terminal in Tilbury2 earlier this year.”

Leo Martin, managing director of GRAHAM’s civil engineering division, said:

“This will be our second project working in collaboration with Forth Ports, following our completion of Tilbury2 on the Thames.

“This is a fantastic scheme for GRAHAM to be working on and another opportunity to demonstrate our wide-ranging marine construction and civils capabilities.

“The offshore renewables construction facility at the Port of Dundee promises to bring significant benefits to both Dundee and indeed the whole of Scotland, both socially and economically, creating jobs and supporting the supply of low carbon electricity.”

14 December 2020                             -ENDS-

The Port of Grangemouth today (10 December) announces a multimillion-pound investment in its rail freight offering which will cement its position as the key strategic freight and export/import hub for Scotland.

The £3 million investment will significantly scale up and modernise the port’s current rail capacity to create an extended dual rail siding of 775 metres – currently 200 metres – capable of handling the longest freight trains on the UK network. When operational early next year, Grangemouth’s will be the first rail freight terminal to offer this and provide enhanced container / domestic intermodal options particularly for customers in the food, drink and perishables sectors across the Scottish freight community.

The investment in rail comes at an important time for the freight market as businesses are seeking flexible, resilient, and greener supply chain solutions. Grangemouth has the unrivalled position of being truly interconnected for sea to rail and rail to sea, with the added flexibility of direct road access into Central Scotland and beyond. With regular container ship calls into the port each week from mainland Europe and the South East of England, this increased rail capacity will help to take trucks off the UK’s congested roads and to lower customers’ carbon footprint.

The port also has on-site distribution warehouses with cross docking possibilities and is within a few miles of the main supermarket distribution centres within Central Scotland.  Grangemouth’s key strategic location in Scotland allows customers to take advantage of the excellent road, rail and shipping network that the port offers.

Commenting on the investment, Derek Knox, Senior Port Manager at The Port of Grangemouth said: “Over the past five years, we have invested over £30 million in the Port of Grangemouth to offer our customers first class service and connectivity for their businesses. We now look to extend this further and the investment in our rail terminal is part of our strategy to provide more resilient, cost effective, greener and efficient options for rail freight transportation to our existing and future customers.

 “The unique advantage of the Grangemouth rail freight terminal is that it is directly linked to Scotland’s largest container port.  This enables customers to easily connect to established short and deep-sea shipping connections to European and international markets.  Additionally, excellent road connectivity to the Port and our central location provides an attractive opportunity for domestic freight flows within the UK.

 “As the UK prepares to leave the EU Single Market and the Customs Union, the freight sector is looking at ways to maintain an efficient free flowing supply chain. With the new rail offering combined with our established port operations and streamlined customs processes, the freight hub we are creating provides a unique solution.  We have recently appointed a rail freight expert, Ian Wilson, to support our rail growth strategy and, coupled with our established rail links with our sister port in Tilbury, we are confident that rail customers will benefit significantly from both freight hubs.”

Existing services link Grangemouth and its sister port in Tilbury on the Thames with a connection through Daventry. Construction of the new rail extension starts this month and is expected to welcome its first train in January 2021 building on current rail volumes at the port.

10 December 2020                                        -Ends-

The Port of Leith is enhancing its position in the offshore renewables market with a seven figure privately funded investment at the port to bring to the market an additional 25 hectares of land linked to over 3km of deep water quaysides. This investment will see the skyline of the port changed, with the final stages of the demolition of the Imperial Grain Silo being completed.

The Port has seen an unprecedented surge in activity over the past few years with the energy transition to low carbon becoming a strong influence in the future of Scotland and Leith. The Port of Leith has been able to demonstrate its agility through responding to project needs ranging from utilising the deep water for the storage of offshore wind farm foundation jackets to significant project work associated with the subsea elements of the development of offshore windfarms.

Shipping and onshore economic activity has been boosted at Scotland’s capital port this year with its key role in supporting EDF Renewables’ and ESB’s major offshore wind farm Neart na Gaoithe (NnG) at various stages of the project.  This major Scottish project will supply enough low carbon electricity for around 375,000* homes and has a capacity of c. 450 megawatts (MW) of low carbon energy, will offsetting over 400,000 tonnes of Co² emissions each year. Watch video here of the work at The Port of Leith: https://vimeo.com/483016712

Commenting on the investment and plans, David Webster, Senior Port Manager at Forth Ports, said: “This investment is another example of our commitment to bring large-scale renewables to Scotland. This will allow Leith to build on its current success as well as complement the significant upgrades that are under way in our Dundee facility. The foundation logistics in Leith will be supported by the wind turbine hub in Dundee, we see this as the future to local content in Scotland that will drive employment.”

Matthias Haag, NnG Project Director, said: “It’s really exciting to see the Port of Leith making such a huge investment in offshore renewables, especially as it will play a key role in the successful delivery of NnG. Since the offshore construction of NnG started in August, the Port of Leith is already Marine Logistics Base for the pile casings. These casings will form part of the foundations on which the project’s 54 turbines and two substations will stand.

“We’ve always said we’re committed to using the Scottish supply chain as much as possible and we’re really pleased to be working with the Port of Leith.”

Kenny Williamson, Deputy Port Manager said: “I have been working in the Port of Leith for 37 years and have never seen so many vessels in port with so much activity going on. This is an exciting time for Leith and Edinburgh as we adapt, upgrade and regenerate the port to create opportunities in Scotland’s emerging industries. We have been successful in winning a number of contracts this year, along with our partners.

“Leith is the largest Port on the East Coast of Scotland and has extensive deep water non-tidal berths connected to more than 140 hectares of land.”

25 November 2020                            – ends –

As the Government launches the competitive bidding process today (16 Nov), DP World and Forth Ports continue to push forward their bid for a Thames Freeport with London Gateway, the Port of Tilbury and Ford’s Dagenham engine plant at its heart.

Backed by the City Corporation of London, Essex Chamber of Commerce, London First, the Port of London Authority, the Thames Estuary Growth Board, Thurrock Council and the South East LEP, a Thames Freeport will drive innovation and transformational productivity gains by growing regional clusters in next generation logistics, automation, clean growth and advanced manufacturing. Vivid Economics is providing economic analysis in support of the bid.

With a network of global and European shipping connections, excellent road, rail and river distribution networks, in addition to unrivalled first hand expertise in operating freeports, the Thurrock-based combined port and logistics cluster has the scale to grow the associated aerospace, automotive and many complex manufacturing and processing businesses along the Thames. A freeport will act as a job creation and high-quality development catalyst in an area of severe deprivation and economic need. Both ports have consented development land that is available for expansion now, with the aim to improve the opportunities for skilled jobs, bringing prosperity to the residents of Thurrock and beyond.

“Freeports will be an effective way of underpinning Britain’s economy post-Brexit and post-Covid by further enabling trade with the rest of the world and creating zones which will act as catalysts for commerce, creativity and prosperity,” commented Alan Shaoul, DP World UK’s Chief Financial Officer.

He added: “Freeports are part of our DNA. DP World began as a single free trade zone and free port in Dubai, Jebel Ali, while Tilbury was a freeport as recently as 2012 and we are confident we can replicate our recent success in the UK.”

Stuart Wallace, Chief Operating Officer, Forth Ports: “The Port of Tilbury and London Gateway are already the most integrated logistics hubs in the UK, harnessing the best-in-class border technologies, with commanding market leading positions across a range of commodities. 

“A Thames Freeport would secure the next stage in the development of our sites, attracting further foreign direct investment, while acting as a testbed for new technologies, including autonomous and electric vehicles, leading to new skills opportunities across the Thames estuary development area.”

– ends –

HS2 Ltd has released a new video highlighting how the additional capacity HS2 will create on Britain’s existing rail network will benefit UK ports and distribution centres that use rail freight for the movement of goods.

Filmed at the Port of Tilbury in Essex, the video shows how additional network capacity for rail freight is essential for Britain’s low carbon future, as transporting goods by rail creates 76% less carbon dioxide emissions than equivalent road journey.

Watch the video here: https://vimeo.com/470638641/dba2ca9ba2

HS2’s brand new track and fast inter-city passenger services frees space on the existing railway network for more freight by rail, taking lorries off the roads and reducing carbon emissions. By putting direct inter-city services on dedicated high-speed lines, HS2 will create more space on the existing railway for Britain’s growing rail freight sector.

The Port of Tilbury is the largest port on the River Thames spanning 1,100-acres and incorporating the London Container Terminal and a new port complex, Tilbury2, which together handle over 500,000 containers and trailers per year for import and export. Tilbury2 also has a dedicated construction material and aggregates terminal (CMAT), capable of handling in excess of five million tonnes of bulk product per annum. With the development of Tilbury2, including its two rail terminals capable of handling the longest freight trains, the port has scope for significant increases in both unitised and bulk cargo flows.

The Port currently welcomes daily rail services to major retail distribution centres and customers in the Midlands, the South West, Wales and Scotland. The trains then return with British products for distribution around London and the South East and exported by ship around the world. From everyday goods to construction materials, more than £30 billion worth of products are distributed by rail in Britain every year. The Port of Tilbury has invested around £23 million in new rail-related infrastructure over the last couple of years to help expand their capacity to deliver more freight by rail.

With logistics companies striving for a green recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, and extra enquiries coming in as customers see rail as part of their supply chain decarbonisations plans, HS2’s capacity benefits will allow ports and distribution centres to offer more rail slots to their customers on the existing network – enabling our economy to grow in a safe and sustainable way. The Port of Tilbury anticipates the amount of materials moved by rail to increase by 900,000 tonnes per annum within the next five years, the equivalent of the weight of 429 London Eyes.

Speaking in a new video about the benefit of HS2 to UK ports, Carole Cran, CFO of Forth Ports said: “HS2 will give us the headroom to grow our network of low carbon delivery routes. By building a new rail line, HS2 takes fast trains off the existing railway and places them on their own dedicated tracks. This allows local and freight trains to run at similar speeds on the existing lines, freeing up space across the network for many more passenger and freight services, so there are benefits for everyone, not just those who will travel on HS2.”

Ben Rule, Infrastructure Management Director, HS2 Ltd said: “Building HS2 is the best way to increase capacity for rail freight on Britain’s existing rail network. Giving the UK’s ports the ability to transport more goods using rail will take lorries of the roads, reducing carbon emissions from transport, and will help us achieve a greener future for Britain.”

Jackie Doyle-Price, Member of Parliament for Thurrock, said: “HS2 is the largest infrastructure project in Europe. It will bring a significant increase in rail capacity to the benefit of the whole UK. HS2 will free up capacity on existing lines to enable the transport of more rail freight including from major ports like Tilbury in my constituency. I fully endorse Tilbury’s push to grow its low carbon delivery model, with rail at its heart. Whether it’s food, medical supplies, or building materials, as we build back better, Tilbury will continue to play its critical role for the nation.”

HS2 Ltd has today also released a new explainer animation – ‘HS2: Upgrading freight Britain’ – which further demonstrates how, by providing additional capacity on the existing network, the new high-speed line will enable more freight to travel by rail, as well as allow an increase in local and regional passenger services.

HS2 will also take thousands of lorries off the roads every year as more freight can travel by rail. Each freight train removes up to 76 lorries from our roads, which currently amounts to 1.63 billion fewer kilometres a year by heavy goods vehicles, or more than seven million lorry journeys.

22 October 2020                  – ends –

The arrival of the Vanquish into Scotland’s key strategic freight hub at The Port of Grangemouth today launched a new-short sea shipping call with Samskip for Scottish exporters and importers direct into mainland Europe.

At a crucial time for the UK as preparations are underway for the UK’s departure from the EU customs union, this new weekly call into Grangemouth expands the vessel rotation on Samskip’s existing Amsterdam/Hull service, opening up wider coverage for customers and providing Samskip with additional capacity to meet increasing demand from the Scottish market.

The service offers an alternative to customers current supply chains with a regular additional call into mainland Europe each week. Cargos expected to use the service include food and drink; paper and steel products. The weekly rotation calling into Grangemouth each Thursday, also calls into Hull and Amsterdam.

Scott Montgomery, Manager of Sales & Operations in Scotland for Samskip said:

“Customers have become accustomed to our reliability and the reach of our intermodal services deep into continental Europe. As their businesses have grown, we’ve grown with them, increasing our capacity on a regular basis to meet their needs and working closely with the Port of Grangemouth to move Scottish business through a Scottish port. Now we take the next step, adding a second ship to improve our capacity, frequency and transit times to and from a number of key markets, in particular, Germany. We’re Brexit ready and our additional ship can help our customers make sure their supply chains are too.”

Commenting on the new service, Derek Knox, Senior Port Manager at The Port of Grangemouth said: “It’s great news for Grangemouth and for the Scottish market that Samskip have chosen the port for this additional call on their growing short-sea European service. The Port of Grangemouth plays a key role in Scotland’s logistics and freight sector and this additional call will increase the frequency of vessels connecting to mainland Europe and provide an enhancement to the current offering from the Port to the Scottish Market.  Grangemouth is Scotland’s key strategic freight hub with the country’s largest container port. Samskip’s customers will benefit from our efficient and fast turnaround times in addition to the many advantages that can be obtained from our key strategic location within Scotland.

 This call is a new alternative to existing supply chain solutions as the UK prepares to leave the EU on 31^st December. These changes should both streamline supply chains and also contribute to our net zero targets as they will facilitate the transfer to short sea shipping routes as opposed to road transport. We continue to invest significantly in Grangemouth with new equipment, an expanded container terminal area and over 400 reefer connections securing us as Scotland’s freight hub of choice.”

 Koen Overtoom, CEO, Port of Amsterdam said: “We are very pleased with this new Grangemouth-Amsterdam connection, as it further expands the short sea proposition of the port of Amsterdam. It shows the strength of the partnership between Forth Ports, Samskip, TMA Logistics and ourselves and connects the hinterland of Amsterdam with the Northern British market, offering new opportunities for shippers. Furthermore, this is a great confirmation coming from the market as it shows the importance of offering efficient and reliable services between our ports.”

 9 October 2020                                              -Ends-

Scotland’s largest agricultural products hub (“agri-hub”) at the Port of Rosyth has completed a bumper month of activity in September, with the handling of over 100,000 tonnes of essential agri products delivered aboard four ships for Cefetra.

The agri-hub, which opened earlier this year, handles an extensive range of important agricultural products for the Scottish animal feed, food and drink and farming industries. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, working together with Cefetra, the port has been open and fully operational throughout these challenging times.

The port has ensured the efficient discharge and handling of the animal feed so that it can be despatched to the farmers who need it to feed their animals. The wheat handled is to be milled into flour and used to make the bread and other bakery products we eat.

Commenting on the shipments, Andy Lamb, Deputy Port Manager at the Port of Rosyth said: “This has been a busy month for the Port of Rosyth as we welcomed 100,000 tonnes of agricultural feed over the quayside for Cefetra’s customers. Even during these challenging times and as we approach winter, our port team are working hard to play their part in supplying the key farming and food markets. The Agri-hub is a success story for the port and Cefetra and we look forward to the next vessel arrival next month.”

Andrew Mackay, Managing Director at Cefetra Ltd, said: “I would like to thank Forth Ports and their team for all their hard work handling our cargos since the new Agri-hub opened and in particular, over this last very busy month. In these difficult times it is even more important that we can rely upon Forth Ports excellent team and facilities to help us deliver these essential products into the food supply chain of Scotland.”

Rosyth’s location and logistical links to the motorway network, make it ideally suited to supply all areas of Scotland and Northern England. The port has both deep sea and short sea capabilities.

About the Agri-hub

 To create the agri-hub, the Port of Rosyth has been deepened to provide a true deep-water port capable of taking vessels carrying up to 50,000 tonnes of cargo. Its existing storage facilities have been significantly extended with the addition of a new, 200,000sq.ft. purpose built agricultural products terminal, increasing the port’s storage capacity to around 100,000 tonnes. The port invested in a new Liebherr mobile harbour crane for bulk handling capability and to manage dust emissions, a new SAMSON ecological hopper is also now in place at the port. The eco hopper is the first of its kind in the UK and forms a key component of the new agri-bulk hub facility.

6 October 2020                               – ENDS –

Forth Ports, the UK’s third largest ports group, has appointed rail freight expert Ian Wilson as its new Intermodal and Logistics Development Manager to focus on the rail offering in Tilbury and Grangemouth.

Ian is a respected, senior executive who is highly experienced in the rail freight, logistics and supply chain industry. Ian previously worked for Eddie Stobart for 20 years in a number of roles, latterly as Business Development Manager in their rail freight division.

Ian joined Forth Ports in August and and will work across the group, focussing on the rail investment in both Tilbury and Grangemouth. Working with Ross McKissock and Derek Knox, Ian will champion Forth Port’s unrivalled seamless interconnectivity to sea, rail and road to the market.

Commenting on his appointment, Stuart Wallace, Chief Operating Officer, said: “We welcome Ian to the team. Ian’s appointment comes at an important time for Forth Ports as we focus and invest in our rail offering across the UK. We have invested over £250million to create Tilbury2 and when the rail head opens at the port later this year, it will be capable of handling the longest freight trains on the tracks. We also have a multimillion-pound investment programme underway in Grangemouth to further enhance our rail offering, providing a seamless link between our hubs on the Thames and Grangemouth.

 We have dedicated direct rail services between our ports enabling customers to get their goods from the south east into the central belt of Scotland in a time, carbon and cost-efficient manner. Ian brings a wealth of experience in rail freight through his time with Eddie Stobart and he has a strong track record in delivering results in the sector.”

Commenting on his appointment, Ian Wilson said: “This is an exciting time for Forth Ports as they position their key ports in Tilbury and Grangemouth as unrivalled rail hubs. I am confident that there are a number of opportunities in the market for businesses looking for a flexible, efficient and greener solution on rail. I am looking forward to playing my part in securing this business.”

24 September 2020                                       -Ends-