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Grains chief lauds PD Ports vision

[ August 12, 2020   //   ]

Glencore UK managing director James Maw (pictured, right) paid tribute to Teesport’s ability to handle all types of ships and its skilled workforce when he opened the Tees Bulks Terminal on 12 August. He said that the facility, jointly developed by Teesport owner PD Ports and the agri products giant could be handling 1.5m tonnes of grains and other products as early as this year and that his company had plans to expand the tonnage and scope of traffic still further, as well as develop export traffic.

Glencore runs a major global shipping transport operation, with 180 vessels on charter at any time, said Maw.

The Tees Bulks Terminal has been built on the site of Teesport’s Steel Export Terminal, which closed in 2015 when the local steelworks closed. It offers 320,000sq ft of storage space, access to one of the deepest rivers in the UK, with a 14.5m draft alongside the berth and the ability to handle 50-60,000dwt panamax vessels, along with a dedicated rail link. It comprises seven walled bays, primed to store a range of bulk products such as soya and grain and directly connected to covered rail access for domestic exports.

At the opening ceremony, PD Ports chief executive Frans Calje (left) said that the opening of the facility was a vindication of his predecessors vision to diversify the port and reduce its reliance on a single major customer. Teesport had “risen from the ashes” after closure of the steelworks and now the company was employing 1,280 people, compared with 1,250 when the steel terminal was still operating.

(The next printed issue of FBJ – FBJ 6 2020 – will include a report on North-East England.)

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