The Peel Ports Group is investing 100 million pounds in UK steel and metals logistics. The investment includes an expansion of storage facilities, new automated terminals in Liverpool and London Medway and a new rail facility in the Midlands.
With the investment, Peel Ports hopes to enhance capacity and boost the efficiency of logistics, the port operator says. It will add a further 140,000 square feet of storage at the Port of Liverpool steel and metals terminal.
“Overall across the Ports of Liverpool and London Medway, warehousing will be increased by 50 percent from the current one million square feet to create an additional 500,000 square feet of capacity”, Peel Ports says. The UK’s second largest port operator also plans to create a second automated terminal in Liverpool dedicated to steel coils. Moreover, it intends to establish a new automated terminal for the Port of London Medway.
The London and Liverpool facilities will then be connected via a new inland rail terminal in the Midlands, the central region of England. “The addition of a new rail terminal in the Midlands will allow us to efficiently connect the two strategically located deep-water ports of Liverpool and London Medway, boosting the efficiency of logistics for our customers and partners”, commented David Huck, COO at Peel Ports Group.
A game-changer
“This is a game-changing investment for us”, continued Huck. “Demand for steel and metals handling across our port group, and the UK in general, has risen sharply over the past five years and this will allow us to expand our support to the construction and manufacturing supply chain right across the country.”
The investment should help address some of the storage and transportation issues that the UK steel sector currently faces. “Warehousing will remain a key focus for the business, with further expansion already in the pipeline as we continue to futureproof our service for the UK’s critical industries”, David Huck added.
