Tilbury mulls setting up New Port Terminal

The Port of Tilbury, London’s major port, begins its pre-planning community consultation on 6 March to seek local views on its proposals to build a new port terminal adjacent to the current port. The proposed new port terminal, known as Tilbury2, will be built on a 152 acre site which was part of the former Tilbury Power Station and will include a new pontoon and deep water jetty.

The Port of Tilbury has been expanding at a fast rate over the past two decade as businesses in the port look for more space and land; coupled with a significant increase in the goods and products coming through the port. The port estimates that this will increase further in the next 15 years which the proposed new port terminal would support.

The proposed terminal at Tilbury2 will act as a satellite of the main port and it is proposed that it will comprise a roll on/roll off ferry terminal for importing and exporting containers and trailers. Tilbury2 is also likely to include a facility for importing and processing bulk construction materials to support demands from the UK’s building sector. In the northern part of the site there is land available for the potential storage of a variety of goods, including cars.

Commenting on the pre-planning consultation events, Peter Ward, Commercial Director at the Port of Tilbury, said: “We are one of the largest ports in the South East and have an ambitious plan in place to continue to grow and to bring economic benefit and jobs to the area. Our customers are looking for expansion opportunities in Tilbury and Tilbury 2 is a part of the port’s overall investment strategy.

“The success of the port in recent years means that we now need more land close to the port to grow and our proposals for Tilbury2, on part of the site of the former Tilbury Power Station, will allow us to do this. We are an active partner in the community are we are holding a series of public consultation events in March and we hope that members of the community will come along and share their views with us there or through the online survey at www.tilbury2.co.uk.”

The community consultation events will take place in March. This is the first stage of seeking views from the local communities and will be followed by statutory/formal consultation during the summer. The non-statutory/informal consultation period runs from 6 March until 21 April inclusive.