London Gateway

Essex, UK

Project outline

The project includes the construction of a new container port and a commercial development. The commercial development comprises some 10M sq ft of floor area with single units up to 1M sq ft in area. The port will include a new RO-RO terminal. The project will incorporate significant additions to off site infrastructure including improvements to the A13 and dualling of the existing Thameshaven Railway.

Contract value

£1 billion

Key features

• On-site remediation of soils adopted to minimise excavation of contaminated soils.

Skills utilised

• Contaminated Land
• Environmental Impact Assessment
• Geotechnical
• Rail Planning and Engineering
• Sustainable Development
• Transportation Planning

Project detail

It is proposed that a large proportion of the port's 1,500 acre hinterland will be developed as a major warehousing and distribution centre, served by rail and by road. This will entail rail freight facilities and a variety of supporting development, a major brownfield site redevelopment and the creation of over 16,000 jobs on site.

In addition to reclaiming land from the River Thames to create a two-mile long quay, the river and seabed will need to be dredged up to 40 nautical miles out into the North Sea. Coastal amelioration land is proposed in Kent and Essex.

The development requires the improvement of major new infrastructure including widening part of the existing A13; improvement of the Thameshaven Branch Line to twin tracks; over 25 km of track and sidings; and approximately 8 km of access roads and associated infrastructure.

Faber Maunsell supported the consent applications for the redevelopment of the site from an oil refinery into a deep-water port and distribution and logistics centre. There is a potential of about 10 million sq feet of warehousing and distribution facilities together with ancillary facilities. The port would have a capacity of around 3.5 million containers each year.

Faber Maunsell also acted as the Lead Assessor for the Environmental Impact Assessment of the project. This has involved managing and coordinating all environmental studies and completing Environmental Statements for consent applications under three separate acts, together with an overarching ES. This makes the ES probably the largest ever produced in the UK.

Faber Maunsell supported the applications under the Town and Country Planning Transport and Works and Harbours Acts and associated CPO and objector matters.