PD Ports' Teesport Bulks Terminal goes online

Photo: PD Ports

The £9.2m investment to renovate and refurbish the former Steel Export Terminal came to fruition on 12 August.

The new 300k ft²/27.9k m²-big facility comprises seven walled bays, primed to store a range of bulk products such as soya and grain, and is directly connected to covered rail. The investment has created 44 new jobs on Teesside.

Simon Clarke MP, Minister for Regional Growth and Local Government, said, "The opening of the Teesport Bulks Terminal marks an important milestone in the continued revival of the Tees Valley. This new terminal will increase trade, create new jobs for the region and help boost the UK's economic recovery as we emerge from the worst effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Teesside is leading the way in an era of international investment and economic renewal and as a proud Teessider, I couldn't welcome this more."

To this Frans Calje, CEO, PD Ports, added, "In 2015, disaster struck the Tees Valley as the steelworks collapsed after more than 150 years of steelmaking. Overnight the River Tees and this region lost one of its main component parts and we, as PD Ports, lost a third of our business."

He furthered, "Thanks to an ongoing journey of diversification, we have been able to rise, almost symbolically, from our own ashes into something that is now far larger in 2020 than it ever was in 2015. We now employ more people than we ever did before in the Tees Valley and instead of being reliant on what we once were we are now in charge of our own destiny. With the opening of this facility we are celebrating the relationship of two like-minded businesses and the realisation that by working together we can be far greater than going it alone."

James Maw, UK Managing Director, Glencore Agriculture UK (which will utilize three bays at the Teesport Bulks Terminal to store its agribulk products destined for UK distribution), summed up, "Our business was getting tired and so we had to radically think about how to revitalise Glencore UK. That planning and strategy led us to Teesside and PD Ports in late 2016. PD Ports has proven its adaptability in transitioning from steel products to a wide range of bulk products and I have to commend the work they have done, alongside key customers, in delivering a remarkable change for PD Ports and the Tees Valley. It is providing a future for the Port and the region as a whole. The Teesport Bulks Terminal will provide new opportunities for both import and export as well as providing the efficiency, reliability, flexibility and a level of service that will ensure that our customers remain our customers."