On Friday, 4 November 2016, a new deep water container terminal Liverpool2 was officially opened at the Port of Liverpool by the Secretary of State for International Trade, Rt Hon Dr Liam Fox MP.

The facility is one of the UK’s largest private sector infrastructure projects, being a UKP 400 mln (USD 500 mln) investment of Peel Ports Group operating a network of ports in the UK and Ireland.

According to the press release of Peel Ports, the terminal construction has required around 16 hectares of reclaimed area created from 5.5 mln tonnes of sand and silt dredged from the River Mersey. The new quay wall is 854m long and 16.5m deep. The terminal is currently equipped with 5 ‘megamax’ STS cranes and 12 RMG cranes enabling it to handle the biggest ocean container vessels. Additional 3 STS and 10 RMG cranes are to be further delivered. Its annual capacity is evaluated at 1 mln TEU.

Liverpool2 will complement the existing Royal Seaforth Container Terminal in Liverpool, with similar capacity.

With the new facility in operation, the port of Liverpool is expected to raise its container market share in the UK from the current 8% to 15%- 20%. The Port is already the country’s biggest transatlantic port (45% market share) and the only major container port in the north or west of the UK, with road, rail and canal connections linking directly to the heart of the UK mainland, accessing almost 58% of the UK’s population.

Mark Whitworth, CEO of Peel Ports said: “Today marks the beginning of a new era for the Port of Liverpool. Our investment will help global shippers to transport cargo more efficiently to their end destination with lower costs, congestion and carbon emissions. Liverpool is in the right location, providing state-of-the art facilities and technology, and offers a real competitive advantage with a shorter supply chain and providing an all-water route right to the heart of the UK via the Manchester Ship Canal.”

The new expanded port facility will create an estimated 500 direct and 4,500 indirect jobs.