Port Of London cruise contract goes to Port of Tilbury and MBNA Thames ClippersThe Port of London Authority (PLA) has awarded the five-year contract for management of its Central London Cruise Moorings to a joint venture between the Port of Tilbury and MBNA Thames Clippers.

The five-year deal will see the joint venture taking over responsibility for the smooth day-to-day operations of three moorings – Greenwich Ship Tier, Tower Bridge Upper and George’s Stair Tier – on behalf of the PLA. Last year the moorings attracted more than 20 calls from cruise ships including Viking Sea and Silver Cloud.

The joint venture brings together capabilities including 17 boats servicing over 4.1 million commuters, domestic visitors and international tourists exploring London as well as experience managing over 100,000 passengers a year through servicing cruise ship calls at Tilbury and at ports in Scotland. The partners’ responsibilities under the contract will include ensuring management of the moorings complies with all national and international regulations, appointing and training port security officers, marketing and promoting London’s cruise facilities to potential customers, and liaising with the PLA harbour master and ships’ agents where necessary around ship calls.

“Our London cruise moorings offer passengers a rare opportunity to get right to the heart of a world city, close to UNESCO World Heritage sites, at both the Tower of London and Maritime Greenwich,” said PLA chief financial officer, Julie Tankard. “The Port of Tilbury and MBNA Thames Clippers won the contract after a close competition. We’re excited to see how their proposals enhance the experience of cruise ship passengers visiting London.”
MBNA Thames Clippers and the Port of Tilbury’s cruise business, Capital Cruising, plan to invest in all aspects of the operation to deliver a world-class service for cruise ships and passengers visiting London. Under the new agreement, which comes into immediate effect, MBNA Thames Clippers will handle all marine elements and transfers and Capital Cruising will look after the International Ship and Port Security (ISPS) security elements and passenger/baggage handling.

Steve Lyons, head of cruise for Capital Cruising at the Port of Tilbury, said: “This is an exciting time for our cruise business. Over the last decade we’ve transformed the Thames offer for larger cruise ships at London International Cruise Terminal at Tilbury, which is now the home port for Cruise & Maritime Voyages. This new agreement with the PLA allows us to bring the marketing of all London’s cruise facilities under one umbrella and to apply our cruise ship management experience to the unique facilities in
central London. Viking Sun will be the first cruise ship of the 2018 central London season, when she makes her maiden call in the capital this Friday, 4 May.”

Sean Collins, founder and CEO of MBNA Thames Clippers, commented: “London is a hugely attractive tourist destination. It makes perfect sense that the Thames – one of its most-loved features – should play a central role in the visitor story.

Obvious ly the river has particular navigational constraints which present complexities for larger vessels, but the capital has the potential of significantly increasing cruise business. It is our intention to harmonise and improve the customer experience to ensure London has the cruise facilities such a world-class city deserves.”

Collins said the new contract would allow MBNA Thames Clippers to maximise exposure for its river bus services – giving cruise passengers the chance to explore the city’s major attractions via existing routes.

Greenwich Ship Tier is the largest facility and is central London’s deep water mooring. It is able to accommodate vessels up to 228 metres in length (draft 8.1 metres). Situated five miles downstream from Tower Bridge, it is close by the Old Royal Naval College and in sight of the Cutty Sark. Vessels moored here are serviced through the world’s first floating cruise terminal, the PLA’s Welcome.
Tower Bridge Upper mooring caters for smaller, specialist vessels up to 158 metres in length (draft 6 metres). Situated 300 metres from Tower Bridge, it shares the moorings with historic warship attraction HMS Belfast.
George’s Stair Tier is situated 1.5 cables downstream from Tower Bridge. It can cater for vessels up to 120 metres in length (draft 2 metres), making it perfect for super yachts.
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PRESS RELEASE
1 May 2018

Port of Tilbury celebrates employee success at annual training and development awards

The Port of Tilbury hosted its annual awards event on board the Cruise and Maritime ship the Magellan. The cruise ship, which is a regular caller at the cruise terminal, was the perfect venue to celebrate and acknowledge the hard work that many of the port employees have undertaken during the past year.

The commitment that training and development requires from an individual, who has a day job too, can take personal and family time and these awards recognise this dedication and achievement. Over 652 courses have been delivered in the past year with 2327 people taking part. With over 100 apprentices successfully completed or currently undertaking training at the Port of Tilbury Logistics Academy, the port has much to celebrate in the creation of the skilled workforce of the future.

Work experience and careers support within the Port has also been part of the commitment made by the team at the Logistics Academy – with a very strong focus on working on initiative in support of our local schools and colleges.

Forth Port’s investment into training and development and connections within its communities is part of ensuring that the ports and logistics sectors have a prosperous and successful future.

Commenting on the awards event, Paul Dale, Asset and Site Director at the Port of Tilbury said: “Our congratulations to everyone at the awards ceremony. This is a fantastic result and the training model delivered through our Logistics Training Academy in Tilbury is to be celebrated. The year has resulted in so many people achieving qualifications across a broad skill set covering warehousing, plant operations, Police training, RTITB, ILM, National Diplomas, leadership and management and apprenticeships.

And it’s not just at Tilbury, we are pleased that this training model is now being mirrored in the building of a new training academy at the Port of Grangemouth. My thanks to the Cruise and Maritime team for their great hospitality on board the Magellan.”

1 May 2018
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PRESS RELEASE

12 April 2018

FORTH PORTS OFFICIALLY MARKS THE CONSTRUCTION OF NEW TRAINING ACADEMY IN SCOTLAND

Forth Port’s Chief Executive was joined by apprentices, graduates and Skills Development Scotland for a ‘turf-cutting’ ceremony to officially mark the start of construction of a new, purpose built, Training Academy located within the Port of Grangemouth, Scotland’s biggest port.

The Training Academy is being built to ensure that the right skills are in place to support the future growth of the business and sustainability of the ports, as well as providing opportunities and flexibility for employees to broaden their skills and enhance their careers and job satisfaction.

Charles Hammond, Group Chief Executive from Forth Ports was joined at the event by Forth Ports 11 apprentices and three graduates along with Kristine Hale, Employer Services Manager from Skills Development Scotland.

The 420 m sq. Training Academy will provide additional in-house facilities for equipment skills training and new classrooms for safety and soft skills programmes – as well as expanding the existing training and education offering to customers and tenants.

Following a tender process, Bathgate based CM Steel Buildings Limited has been appointed to design and build the Training Academy with the completion expected to be at the end of this year.

This is a key strategic investment in Forth Port’s long term focus on skills, qualifications and personal development for all employees across its Scottish operations including the Ports of Dundee, Leith, Rosyth and Grangemouth. Forth Ports also has an award winning Logistics Academy located at its port in Tilbury on the Thames.

Commenting on the ceremony, Charles Hammond, Group Chief Executive at Forth Ports said: “This is an important investment for Forth Ports as we begin the creation of a specialist training academy in Grangemouth to continuously develop and enhance the skills of our current and future workforce. People are key to our business’s success and with this new facility, not only will individuals benefit, but so will our customers. In our 50th year of operation as Forth Ports, the Academy will also support the work we do with schools, colleges and local community projects.”

12 April 2018
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Kite Spirit Textiles mark Windrush 70th Anniversary at London Cruise Terminal

Kite Spirit Textiles have been working with The Port of Tilbury to create a fabulous piece of art using textiles to celebrate the 70th Anniversary of the Empire Windrush. The group are also looking at creating amazing textile panels for the vast windows in the London International Cruise Terminal in Tilbury that outline the history of the building and tell a story.

The group are working on a large textile piece that reflects Jamaica and the lush countryside with all the tropical flora and fauna. Everyone involved has been working on individual pieces at home and then they meet once or twice a week to assemble their works of art and marvel at each other’s work.

The story of the Windrush will be told in three different panels that will be hung in the Cruise Terminal in Tilbury for the Windrush Anniversary celebrations on the 22nd June; during the port Open Day on the 21st July; and throughout the summer.

The textiles will be a spectacle and the story of their creation – from research and planning, to the individual creations and assemble of the final works of art – make it a truly collaborative and spectacular piece of work.

The Port of Tilbury enjoys being part of these projects and this one has been great to watch as it develops and there is much excitement to see the final piece.

30 March 2018
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MEDIA RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – 23 March 2018
CAPITAL CRUISING STRENGTHENS CRUISE TEAM IN SCOTLAND WITH NEW APPOINTMENT

Capital Cruising, who run six busy cruise terminals across the UK, including two of the most strategically located Ports in Europe – Edinburgh and London – has appointed Chris Alexander to the management team.

Chris, who joined the business at the beginning of March, is an experienced professional who has worked in the cruise industry for over 20 years. Chris was previously a Ships Agent with Denholm Wilhelmsen Limited working with cruise vessels across Scotland. He also worked with Matthew Taylor also as a Ships Agent.

In this new role for Capital Cruising, which is owned by Forth Ports, Chris will be responsible for coordinating and planning all cruise visits in Scotland and will work closely across cruise operations in the Forth and the Tay. The creation of this new role demonstrates the company’s commitment to offering customers the best experience possible.

Capital Cruising’s Head of Cruise, Robert Mason said:
“We welcome Chris to the management team at an important time for our cruise business. We are growing year on year as the cruise industry increases in popularity and it’s important that we deliver an excellent customer experience for people visiting or leaving from our ports and anchorages. 2018 is set to be our busiest yet so this will keep Chris busy!”

Commenting on his new role, Chris Alexander, said: “This is an exciting new role for me within the cruise sector that I know so well and I am looking forward to playing my part in the continued growth of the business in Scotland.”

23 March 2018
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PRESS RELEASE

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER FOR OIL & GAS AND DECOMMISSIONING STARTS AT FORTH PORTS

Forth Ports, the UK’s third largest ports group, has appointed Ann Rooney as its new Business Development Manager to focus on oil and gas support and decommissioning activity for Scotland.

Ann is a senior executive experienced in business development and operational functions within the shipping, logistics and marine sector. She previously worked with DB Schenker for seven years in various roles and also with GAC Shipping Limited as project coordinator and ships agent.

Ann, who has started with the business, will be based in Aberdeen and work across the Scottish operation, which operates seven commercial ports on the Tay and Forth Estuaries, with her main focus on the ports of Dundee, Leith and Rosyth, working with David Webster and Fiona Doherty the Port Managers for these areas. Ann will also work closely with the team at Dundeecom on joint opportunities in decommissioning.

Stuart Wallace, Chief Operating Officer of Forth Ports, said: “We welcome Ann to the Scottish team. Ann’s appointment comes at an important time for Forth Ports’ as we focus on attracting work from the oil and gas and decommissioning sector to our ports on the Tay and Forth Estuaries. Ann brings a wealth of experience and she has a strong track record in delivering results.”

Commenting on her appointment, Ann Rooney said: “This is an exciting time for Forth Ports as they position their key ports as hubs for NSO, decommissioning and offshore renewables. I am confident that there are a number of opportunities particularly in the decommissioning market for the ports and I am looking forward to playing my part in securing this business.”

21 March 2018
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