An Associated British Ports (ABP) container terminal located in Hull, England has secured deep-sea connections to the rest of the world for the first time in its history.
An agreement has been made between ABP and Maersk, the world’s largest container shipping line, to open a trading link between the north of England and the Far East.
The new service, which will commence in 2019, consists of feeder vessels visiting ABP Humber on a weekly basis, requiring the terminal to handle around 240 containers a week for an annual total of 12,000.
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Simon Bird, ABP Humber Director, said: “Unlocking this new trade gateway to the rest of the world is not only significant for the local economy, but also for the national and international economy.
“We’re proud to welcome the world’s largest container shipping line, Maersk, on board to the Hull Container Terminal, and we look forward to strengthening our partnership and building further trade links.
“We believe that the Humber Container Terminals – Hull and Immingham – are now the premier container destinations in the North of England, offering an unrivalled service. We have recently invested £50 million into these terminals including our two £10.5 million gantry cranes at the Hull Container Terminal.”
According to a statement, the recent investment has helped the Hull Container Terminal double its capacity to 240,000 TEU per year.
This is BIG news and will hopefully lead to even further container volume increases through Hull once the service gets well established. Well done @ABPHumber and @Maersk and good luck �� https://t.co/ImKsmDJbUy
— Matt Jukes (@CEXHCC) December 20, 2018
ABP’s four ports on the Humber, which also include Grimsby and Goole, handle around 17% of all of the UK’s seaborne trade, amounting to £75 billion worth of trade a year.
Chris Vause, ABP Commercial Manager, added: “We have recently opened up connections to Ghent, Rotterdam and Amsterdam and the fact that we now have a significant world-wide container line on board, proves that Hull Container Terminal is a powerhouse in its own right.”
Asbjorn Kops, Maersk’s Product Manager for UK & Ireland, also commented: “At Maersk, we continuously work on improving our local product offering, ensuring that our portfolio meets the expectations of our customers and helps them grow their business.
“Our short-sea connections complement our ocean services and connect our customers with markets around the world.”
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