The latest stage of a £50 million expansion of automotive trade at the Port of Southampton has begun, ABP said in its press release.
Work on the latest £15 million multi-deck storage facility in the Eastern Dock will take 9 months and will create 3,000 additional spaces for vehicles to be stored. This is the eighth multi-deck at the port and this significant investment will further strengthen the port’s position as a global hub for automotive trade.
Representatives from BMW Group, one of the main automotive customers for this facility at the port, and Morgan Sindall Construction & Infrastructure, the contractor appointed for the construction, visited the site to mark the beginning of the construction work.
ABP Southampton Director, Alastair Welch, said: “We continually invest in facilities at the port to meet the growing demands of the automotive industry into the future. We’re pleased to work with BMW Group and other automotive partners to support their business demand for space.”
Morgan Sindall Construction & Infrastructure area director for the South, Jon Daines, said: “This is the sixth scheme we have delivered at The Port of Southampton and we’re delighted to be continuing this longstanding partnership as ABP continues its investment in this global automotive hub. We’re proud to have the opportunity to utilise our expertise to strengthen this key UK asset and look forward to delivering the next phase of expansion.”
The Port of Southampton is the UK’s leading vehicle export port, handling trade worth £40 billion each year. Every month, Southampton supports 11 shipping lines which make 150 calls to 54 ports in 41 countries, making the port a huge asset for Britain.