DP World has invested £12 million ($14.86 million) in two new Rail Mounted Gantry (RMG) cranes at London Gateway.
The £12 million ($14.86 million) investment in the cranes – which are used for the quick, safe, and automated handling of containers – will increase rail capacity at London Gateway by 50 per cent.
Andrew Bowen, Port Operations Director at London Gateway, said: “After the disruption of recent years, shipping lines and cargo owners are looking for capacity, reliability and growth opportunities and DP World will deliver on all three fronts.”
“This is the latest step forward in our journey to becoming an end-to-end logistics provider.
“In November we launched a new intermodal train service connecting our container terminals at London Gateway and Southampton which will enable customers to switch volumes quickly and easily between the two UK locations.
“The DP World-operated round service carries cargo including fresh fruit, beverages and consumer goods in less than five hours, taking up to 120 lorries a week off the roads.
“We estimate that the emphasis on rail across both ports takes a total of 300,000 trucks off UK roads each year and we are committed to playing our part in helping the UK meet its Net Zero 2050 policy,” Bowen added.
READ: DP World Southampton halves carbon emissions output
DP World has now also started construction at London Gateway’s new £350 million ($433.4 million) fourth berth, which will lift capacity by a third when it opens in 2024.
The construction project is supporting 1,000 jobs and the port-centric logistics park will employ a further 12,000 people when it is completed in four years’ time.
DP World has also earmarked a further £1 billion of investment in the UK over the next 10 years.
These recent developments have come a month after the Saudi Arabia-based Hassana Investment Company (Hassana) announced an investment of approximately $2.4 billion in three of DP World’s UAE assets.