Dublin Port Company (DPC) has announced the launch of T4, a €127 million ($135 million) refurbished Roll-on/Roll-off (RoRo) freight facility in the port.
Based on 2022 predictions, the T4 facility will handle more than 220,000 RoRo units per year, accounting for more than one-fifth of all RoRo units at Dublin Port and more RoRo freight per year than any other port in the Republic of Ireland.
T4’s capacity is generated from the rearrangement of 4.1ha of existing port lands to enable more effective space for processing unaccompanied RoRo units from Europe and the United Kingdom.
It goes live at a time when there is an increase in demand for unaccompanied RoRo freight services (goods on trailers transported by ferry without a driver) to and from the greater Dublin market following Brexit. It has also allowed for the establishment of a new transhipment route to Santander.
T4 opens 3 kilometres of new quay walls, modernising Victorian-era port infrastructure to support ferry operator Seatruck’s direct services between Dublin and Liverpool/Heysham.
The work also involved the demolition of an old jetty, replaced with two modern jetties of 270 metres each, that will accommodate the largest ferries measuring 240 metres in length and which have been future-proofed to allow for shore to ship power in the years ahead.
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Jack Chambers, Minister of State, TD said: “I am delighted to be on-site for the opening of T4 and to see first-hand the world-class facilities that are in place at Dublin Port.
“Dublin Port is Ireland’s largest freight and passenger port handling approximately 51 per cent of national tonnage. Its importance is even more pronounced in the unitised freight sector as it handles 71 per cent of all Load-on/Load-off (LoLo) and 80 per cent of all RoRo tonnage in and out of the country.
“In line with its Masterplan, Dublin Port has been progressing the necessary infrastructure to provide for increases in throughput. T4 will greatly enhance Roll-on/Roll-off capabilities at the port. As an island nation, sufficient capacity and the efficient and seamless operation of our ports are indispensable for the success of Ireland’s importers and exporters.”
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Barry O’Connell, Chief Executive of Dublin Port Company, stated: “Dublin is already one of the most efficient ports in Europe. With T4, we are driving even more efficiencies and facilitating growing customer demand for direct shipping routes between Dublin, the UK and Europe.
“Even with T4 now fully in operation, Dublin is running at 91 per cent average capacity and therefore it is imperative that our plans to complete all three of our Masterplan 2040 projects continue as planned.
“This will ensure we create the capacity needed to support the ongoing growth in the economy to 2040, while providing new public amenities that will support the growth of our city and neighbouring community for decades to come.”
According to DPC, the development of T4 has also facilitated the closure of an entrance onto East Wall Road paving the way for DPC’s Liffey Tolka Greenway project on East Wall Road to commence construction in 2024.
The East Wall Road will be transformed with a new dedicated 1.4-kilometre cycle and pedestrian path, which will eventually become part of the 16.5-kilometre cycleway/walkway planned as part of the overall Masterplan.