DP World Plans New London Deepwater Port - Bloomberg

DP World Ltd. (DPW) is preparing to spend 1.5 billion pounds ($2.5 billion) on Britain’s first deepwater port in at least 20 years at a time when the economy has yet to recover from the last recession.

The world’s fourth-largest port operator is dredging about 106 million cubic feet to accommodate the world’s biggest ships at London Gateway, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) east of the capital. It’s designed to win clients by combining a harbor terminal with an onsite distribution center, luring wholesalers and retailers away from older ports such as Hutchison Whampoa Ltd. (13)’s Port of Felixstowe, about 50 miles northeast.

DP World is pinning the investment on Britain’s need for more modern facilities that will help companies save on transport costs at a time when U.K. economic growth is set to trail global expansion. If completed as planned, London Gateway would expand the U.K.’s capacity for ultra-large container ships and become Europe’s sixth biggest port, based on 2009 rankings.

* username: rupertbu