Cold-stored traffic is expected to grow at the container terminal in Southampton, England. The operators, DP World, have installed an extra 300 reefer points in anticipation. That takes the total compliment to around 1500 points. DP World says that makes their combination of Southampton and London Gateway the biggest reefer-handling facility in Britain.
Recent trade switches, new cranes on order, and an expected growth in the market overall, are all factors combining to expand the reefer requirement at Southampton. That combination of circumstances has prompted DP World to invest in more reefer capacity, at a port that was already well-resourced.
Global market continues to grow
Despite the constrained estate at Southampton, space has been found for more cold store capacity. “We’ve just opened 300 additional reefer points,” said Ben Holden, operations manager at Southampton, at a recent briefing at the port. He explained that a global reshuffle of trade routes and the shipping services in the UK, had seen some reefer services move to Southampton from London Gateway, DP World’s other UK property. “300 additional reefer points were opened in the last week of August [at Southampton], taking us over 1500 reefer points,” he said. “Reefer trade is a very big part of what DP World does.”
The new installations are designed to future-proof Southampton in the light of a growing market worldwide. “We put 300 in, but the market is globally for us always continues to grow,” explained Andy Bowen, Chief Operating Officer, UK Ports & Terminals for DP World. “If we need to put more in, we’ll put more in. We’re prepared to invest in for the long term. Not only London Gateway, [but also] here in Southampton, where DP World continues to invest because we look at the long-term picture about what we have to do. These big infrastructure facilities, you’ve got to continue to invest, keep up with the technology. So for us, it’s a sensible decision. We believe the reefer points here is what we need for the trades we have.”
No inter-port reefer transfers
Nevertheless, DP World’s port at London Gateway is effectively a ‘green field’ development with a hinterland of a large logistics park, with extensive reefer capability. DP World already operates a five-times-a-week intermodal train service between Southampton and London Gateway, which could take pressure off Southampton’s more contained site. That however, is not part of the plan.
“No, we don’t do that,” was the emphatic response from Andy Bowen, explaining that reefers landed at Southampton would be forwarded onwards from Southampton. “We have to have the reefer capacity in the terminal,” he said. “We don’t use reefers and put them up to London Gateway. We have reefer capacity here for the services here. Reefer capacity in London Gateway is for the reefer needs there.”
Realising capacity
DP World does, however, operate an incentive scheme at Southampton, which pays a bounty to shippers who forward import containers by rail. That makes it possible for reefers to be taken by rail to London Gateway, for ‘last mile’ delivery. “A haulier could pick it up at the other end and take it off as well,” says Andy Bowen.
Southampton has four additional STS cranes on order for delivery in 2026, which will help the port towards its nominal annual capacity of 2.4m TEU. When combined with their other UK facility, London Gateway, DP World claims to be the largest reefer port operator in the country.