Forth Ports said the proposals would include deepening the port from 7.5 metres at present to “over 10 metres” in what is expected would be a “multi-million pound investment estimated to take around three years to complete
Forth Ports has launched a feasibility study to assess the viability and cost of deepening the shipping channel at Grangemouth port.
The proposals include deepening the port water depth from 7.5 metres at present to “over 10 metres” in what is expected would be a “multi-million pound investment” estimated to take around three years to complete.
Forth Ports said the deepening project would enable it to bring larger, heavier container ships and bulk vessels to the quayside.
The port deepening feasability study forms part of a wider “major investment” plan for the port, which also includes increasing container storage capacity. Forth Ports is to increase capacity at Scotland’s busiest container terminal to 12,000
total capacity to 12,000 TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent unit, the industry standard container size). This latest expansion of the container storage area, with Forth Ports says would mean the storage area has increased by 50 per cent since 2005.
The storage expansion work is expected to be completed and ready for business in October 2015, and represents the second phase of Forth Ports’ five-year investment plan to improve the storage capabilities of the terminal.
The company said it expects to increase storage capacity by a further 10 per cent within the five-year investment plan, and “in line with market demand”.
Forth Ports chief executive Charles Hammond, said: “This is an important investment for the business which will further secure Grangemouth’s position as Scotland’s largest container terminal. “We have analysed the shipping trends and identified the growing demand to accommodate larger vessels from around the world.
“Through this investment, we will ensure that the Port of Grangemouth remains front and centre for Scotland’s importers and exporters.”
