Feature, Freight News, Sea


It was sixty years ago today…Grangemouth celebrates 60 years of The Box

[ May 7, 2026   //   ]

When the first regular containership arrived on these shores on 7 May 1966 its port of call was not Southampton, London or Felixstowe but Scotland’s largest port, Grangemouth.

The Sea-land freight service called into the Scottish gateways as part of its Europe and American shipping route transporting mostly Scotch whisky to the US. Grangemouth was the only UK port in the rotation making Grangemouth’s container terminal the first port in the UK to handle goods in this way. Global cargo transportation was never the same again.

The weekly route was the first transatlantic ship carrying only containers and also called at Port Elizabeth, New Jersey and Baltimore, Maryland, then Rotterdam, Bremen and, finally, Grangemouth.

Over the past 60 years, Grangemouth has developed and is now Scotland’s largest container port and logistics hub covering an area of 402 acres employing 280 people. It remains primarily an export port moving Scottish goods to global locations and, since 1966, its container terminal has handled over 4.2million containers. Today, its operations manage more than £6 billion worth of goods each year including food and drink, construction products and renewables.

To mark the anniversary, the port is planning to hold a port open day for the community and is working with schools on a project involving the local young people helping the port to name their new harbour crane.

Regional director, Scotland, Derek Knox, said: “This is a significant milestone in the history of the port of Grangemouth. Over the past 60 years the port has changed and adapted to meet the changing needs of our customers and markets through investment in not only our infrastructure and equipment, but in our skills. Grangemouth has grown to become Scotland’s largest container port and logistics hub and makes a major contribution to the economy of Scotland. We look forward to continuing to play our part in Scotland’s success for the next 60 years.”

Asset manager for the Port of Grangemouth, Craig Torrance, added: “Grangemouth has changed significantly over the past 60 years from the size of vessels, a move to more sustainable handling equipment, health and safety priorities and people skills. A stevedore from 60 years ago would not recognise the port of today although some things have not changed, we still maintain the same customer focus that we did all those years ago and we still export a lot of whisky from Grangemouth.”

Back in 1966, the BBC began to broadcast in colour, Harold Wilson was Prime Minister, the first credit card was launched in the UK, the Beatles performed their last UK concert, James Bond’s Thunderball was the number one at cinema box offices and Manfred Man’s Pretty Flamingo was Number One. And England won the World Cup (not that they talk about that in Scotland).

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