While the port’s £1 billion (1,17 billion euros) expansion programme has already been well publicised, this specific rail package has not been formally announced. Instead, the tender has appeared via construction and procurement listings, signalling a live opportunity for contractors – albeit one upon which they will have to act promptly as work is proposed to start this summer. For rail freight, the implications are far from minor, pointing to a substantial uplift in capacity, flexibility and operational resilience at one of the UK’s fastest-growing intermodal hubs.

A second rail terminal takes shape

The tender confirms that Phase 2 will build on earlier works to create a fully fledged second rail terminal to the west of the existing facility. Phase 1 has already delivered initial sidings, but this next stage significantly expands the layout, adding five new sidings to complement those already in operation. In practical terms, this means more trains can be handled simultaneously, easing one of the key constraints in port rail operations.

Beyond track layout, the scope includes 21 new switches and crossings, enabling more flexible routing of trains between the western and eastern terminals. This is not simply an extension but a reconfiguration of how rail flows through the port, allowing parallel movements and reducing conflicts. The result is likely to be faster turnaround times and a higher throughput of intermodal services.

Cranes, control and integration

A defining feature of the project is the installation of an 850-metre crane rail beam to support rail-mounted gantry cranes. These machines form the backbone of high-capacity intermodal terminals, enabling rapid transfer of containers between trains and the yard. Their inclusion signals that the second terminal will mirror, and potentially enhance, the semi-automated handling model already in place.

The tender also highlights significant signalling and control upgrades, including a new shunter’s cabin and an integrated control panel capable of managing both terminals. By linking operations into a single system, port operator DP World is effectively creating a unified rail hub rather than two separate facilities. This level of integration is critical for scaling up volumes without introducing operational bottlenecks.

Quiet procurement, strategic shift

The absence of fanfare for the launch is a notable contrast to public works of this scale. However, in the absence of any political need to proclaim the project, it is not unusual for privately procured infrastructure. The tender has been issued under a utilities-style competitive procedure by London Gateway Port Limited, reflecting a more flexible, commercially driven approach. The overall scale of development at London Gateway will be the subject of an extended feature report in the May edition of our sister magazine, WorldCargo News.

Strategically, the move reinforces rail’s growing role at London Gateway. The port already handles a significant share of its containers by rail, and this expansion suggests a deliberate push to increase that proportion further. As pressure mounts to decarbonise UK freight, such “quiet” investments could prove decisive, reshaping inland logistics flows and strengthening rail’s position in the national supply chain.

Quietly, incrementally advancing rail

Once completed, the expanded terminal is expected to support a marked increase in train movements, potentially lifting weekly service capacity well beyond current levels. Longer, fully loaded intermodal trains—typically up to 775 metres—will benefit from additional handling roads and improved network access, making rail a more competitive option for inland distribution.

In a wider context, this positions London Gateway to compete more aggressively with established rail freight ports, notably Felixstowe, which may relinquish its position as the UK’s busiest rail freight terminal. More importantly, it underlines a broader shift. The rail freight sector would clearly state that it is not a peripheral mode in port logistics. Rail is an integral component of future capacity planning—often advancing in incremental, low-profile steps like this one.

The award highlights DP World’s Modal Shift Programme, launched in 2023, and comes as rail continues to play a central role in the decarbonisation of UK freight logistics. Business group Logistics UK named DP World the Rail Freight Business of the Year at its annual awards ceremony, citing strong take-up of the operator’s Modal Shift Programme and measurable carbon savings.

Modal shift recognised

The modal shift programme was launched in September 2023 to tackle the underutilisation of UK rail freight. The incentive scheme pays a bounty for moving containers inland by rail instead of road. According to figures from DP World and Logistics UK, around a quarter of available capacity on intermodal trains can run empty. While moving freight by rail delivers emissions savings of up to 76% compared with diesel road haulage, higher costs have historically discouraged shippers from making the switch.

However, the DP World scheme has highlighted latent demand. In its first 18 months, the initiative moved 103,475 containers by rail from DP World’s Southampton hub. Rail’s share of container movements increased by 10% (to over 30% of containers, with an estimated 28,200 tonnes of CO₂e eliminated, underlining growing industry confidence in rail-based solutions.

Incentives and interport rail services

Two initiatives sit at the heart of DP World’s rail freight strategy. The first is the incentive scheme at Southampton, designed to encourage import-laden containers to move inland by rail rather than road. It was by reducing the cost differential between modes, that the scheme aimed to make rail a commercially realistic option for a wider range of customers, not just those with established intermodal flows – for whom volume brings its own commercial advantages.

Alongside this, DP World also operates its own five-times-a-week intermodal “interport” train service between its London Gateway and Southampton terminals (see WorldCargoNews.com). The service links two of the UK’s largest container ports by rail, allowing boxes to be repositioned efficiently between deep-sea hubs, supporting shipping line networks and reducing reliance on long-distance trucking. It also helps DP World operate the two port terminals as a single business unit. The terminals are roughly 120 miles (193 kilometres) apart.

Industry praise

“DP World has led the way in improving the commercial viability of rail, increasing rail share and helping to decarbonise UK freight logistics,” said Kevin Green, Logistics UK’s Acting Chief Executive. “I would like to congratulate DP World on its win. It truly is ‘the best of the best’ in the rail sector.”

“We’re delighted to win this award for [our] Modal Shift Programme for our road to rail shipments,” said John Trenchard, Vice President Commercial & Supply Chain, UK at DP World. “It’s really nice to be recognised. A lot of people came together to get this done so I’m very proud on behalf of DP World. Thanks to all our logistics partners who have decided to try something a bit new with rail, resulting in over 140,000 shipments.”

Tesco highly commended

Another long-standing user of rail freight, Tesco Distribution, was highly commended in the same category. The retailer is one of the UK’s largest rail freight customers, operating an extensive network of intermodal services linking ports, distribution centres and regional hubs. Tesco has worked closely with rail freight operator Direct Rail Services over many years, using rail to move thousands of containers each week. partnership has helped remove significant volumes of heavy goods vehicle traffic from the road network, while providing reliable trunk haulage for one of the UK’s most complex retail supply chains.

As the country’s largest supermarket group, Tesco’s commitment to rail freight carries wider significance for the sector, demonstrating that rail can meet the demanding service, reliability and cost requirements of high-volume grocery retailing. The supermarket chain recently extended the movement of refrigerated containers into South Wales, in a collaboration with infrastructure agency Network Rail.

Logistics UK is one of the UK’s largest business groups, representing logistics businesses across road, rail, water and air, as well as major buyers of freight services. With more than seven million people directly employed in the making, selling and movement of goods, the organisation says logistics has never been more important to UK plc, particularly as decarbonisation, new technology and supply chain disruption reshape the sector.

The Christmas peak offers a timely reminder that rail freight does more than move a Santa’s sleigh worth of presents. It sustains skilled jobs across the country, underpins regional economies, and, according to RailFreight.com UK Editor Simon Walton, it quietly bucks the national trend.

A Christmas rush but not a seasonal industry

Every December, rail freight briefly becomes visible. Trains are loaded with retail goods, food and drink, parcels and packaging materials. There’s also the aggregates for building, the biomass for heating, and a hundred less photogenic commodities. It all rolls deeper into the national consciousness, usually accompanied by the familiar observation that rail is “helping Christmas along”.

The implication, however unintended, is that rail freight is a seasonal helper. It’s something that steps in when roads are under pressure, before slipping back into obscurity once the decorations come down. The reality is rather different. Rail freight does not switch on for the twelve days of Christmas. What the festive peak reveals is a sector that is already deeply embedded in Britain’s supply chains. It responds to demand with scale, reliability and reach. This is not the exception. It’s just business as usual.

Jobs that don’t vanish with the decorations

The year-round reliability of rail freight matters, because Britain’s wider employment picture remains fragile. Job creation is increasingly uneven, insecure and concentrated in fewer parts of the country. Against that backdrop, rail freight employment looks quietly robust. It sustains skilled, long-term roles across Great Britain, from drivers and signallers to engineers, terminal staff, planners and logistics specialists. These are jobs rooted in place, linked to physical infrastructure and difficult to offshore.

They are also spread far beyond the traditional centres of economic gravity. Ports such as Felixstowe, Liverpool and Grangemouth anchor freight activity in coastal and industrial regions. The latter is a case in point. For all the economic gloom around Grangemouth’s petrochemical industry (lost oil traffic, for example), the port and freight terminal have been quietly sustaining jobs and continuing commerce. In an economy struggling to generate stable work, rail freight continues to do exactly that – largely without fanfare.

Regional economies and the quiet multiplier effect

The employment story does not stop at the railway boundary. Each freight path supports a wider web of economic activity: warehouses, maintenance firms, haulage companies, manufacturers and exporters. This quiet multiplier is rarely captured in economic performance figures. It links ports to inland economies, supports industrial clusters and keeps supply chains viable in places where alternative sources of investment (and employment) are limited.

When commentators talk about “hard-working people” or “levelling up” (actually, that term has been quietly abandoned), they often do so in abstract terms. Rail freight delivers it in practice. It’s there, through physical connections that tie local jobs to national and international markets. That contribution is rarely captured in the headlines. It is, however, very much felt in communities where rail freight remains one of the few sources of dependable economic momentum.

Bucking the trend without carolling about it

Set against the wider economic backdrop, the contrast is striking. Growth remains elusive, business confidence is fragile, and many sectors are treading water at best. Rail freight, by comparison, continues to show cautious but real momentum. Terminal investment is proceeding, and port-centric logistics are expanding. Just look at the poster child of the sector, London Gateway, and its additional rail terminal. Customers are increasingly turning to rail for resilience as much as sustainability.

This is not growth fuelled by subsidy or short-term stimulus – although both would be welcome and be money well spent. It is demand-led, customer-funded and shaped by commercial reality. In that sense, rail freight feels curiously out of step with the national mood. That’s not because it is booming, but because it is still functioning as an engine of productive economic activity.

Policy blind spots in plain sight

Despite this contribution, freight remains doggedly marginal in the policy conversation. Rail reform debates still default to passenger priorities. Capacity discussions rarely start with freight. Employment benefits are seldom factored into decisions about paths, investment or timetable planning.

The Christmas peak risks reinforcing the wrong lesson. Easily made media stories portray rail freight as a useful seasonal supplement. Generalist reporting fails to recognise it as a permanent economic asset. In an economy desperate for skilled jobs, resilient supply chains and regionally distributed growth, this feels like an opportunity missed in post-industrial Britain, where the value of work is measured in spreadsheets, not machine tools blunted with relentless use.

Not a Christmas miracle, just a permanent asset

The real lesson of festive freight is not that the sector rises to the occasion. It is that it already carries far more of the economic load than it is credited for. Rail freight supports jobs that last beyond the season, regions that rarely dominate the headlines, and supply chains that continue to function even as the wider economy falters.

That should place it closer to the centre of economic and transport policy – not at the margins, rediscovered each December and forgotten again by February. If rail freight can buck the trend in a shrinking economy, the question for policymakers is a simple one: what might it deliver if it were properly recognised as part of the solution? ’Tis the season, after all.

The latest example is DP World’s London Gateway, where ongoing congestion has led shipping lines to review port rotations. In response, one shipping line has diverted a scheduled port call to Southampton. The disruption underlines the flexibility of modern deep-water hubs. It also highlights how, even on Britain’s heavily used network, rail can reshape how congestion is managed across the UK port fleet.

London Gateway responding to its success

Persistent congestion at London Gateway, driven by surging import volumes, particularly from China, has lengthened berth waiting times and threatened schedule reliability. In response, French carrier CMA CGM has temporarily adjusted its South America – Europe trade route (designated “SAFRAN”) to call at Southampton instead of London Gateway. That temporary adjustment has been going on for more than half a year. It has now been extended through the first quarter of 2026.

Down on the north bank of the Thames, DP World, the owner of London Gateway, is engaged in a radical expansion of the terminal. The programme, reported in March, is going from four shipping berths to six. It will also see  the building of a second rail terminal. Southampton benefitted from a Network Rail programme, completed in 2021, which eased rail access. DP World, which operates both terminals, runs a five-times-a-week inter-port rail service, enabling containers to be transferred directly between the two southern English terminals. The Dubai-headquartered company also encourages shippers to move containers inland by rail by offering a financial bounty.

Rail-led resilience beyond the South East

The same model is visible at other British intermodal ports. At Felixstowe, the UK’s largest container port, rail already accounts for around a third of all container movements. It’s often rightly quoted as Britain’s busiest rail freight terminal, which happens to have a port attached. On the West Coast, Liverpool has positioned itself as a rail-connected alternative for deep-sea and short-sea services. The port’s direct rail access to the West Coast Main Line is frequently cited in expansion proposals, even as grand as an autonomous rail tunnel under the city to facilitate better freight access.

Further north, Grangemouth illustrates how rail underpins resilience at short-sea container ports. It doesn’t handle vessels of the size alongside at London Gateway and Southampton. However, it is a strong connection for feeder and European short-sea services. Grangemouth has rail right onto the quayside and functions as a strategic redistribution hub, rather than just a local terminal.

Pressure likely to persist

London Gateway is progressing with its expansion programme aimed at increasing capacity and improving resilience. However, with global trade flows remaining volatile and vessel sizes continuing to grow, congestion risks are unlikely to disappear entirely. The move by the French carrier CMA CGM (see WorldCargoNews.com) merely reflects the health of the UK maritime sector as a whole. The ability to switch port calls without breaking inland supply chains depends increasingly on rail connectivity.

In the near term, carriers are expected to continue fine-tuning rotations. Port operators are being encouraged to lean more heavily on rail. The UK government is eager to see its net-zero targets aided by more both inter-port and port-to-inland rail freight. As Britain’s port fleet continues to reshape and regenerate, rail is proving a central tool for Britain’s intermodal logistics.

In Suffolk, on the east coast of England, Felixstowe is dealing with its dual role as far and away the busiest port in Britain, but it’s also far and away Britain’s busiest rail freight terminal. However, the real story is that Felixstowe is far from alone, and at least one challenger is coming up on the rails.

Britain’s rail freight champion is constrained

Felixstowe is often quoted among the British rail industry as the busiest terminal in the UK. It’s hardly surprising, given the size of the port operation and the importance of intermodal traffic to the modern rail freight sector. Three dedicated rail terminals are serviced by a complicated rail infrastructure that moves around 35 trains a day in and out of the port.

However, if anything constrains rail movements at Felixstowe, it’s where the traffic goes after leaving the port estate. The single-track branch line that serves the port rail yards is a brake on movements. More challenging, though, is the congested rail layout at nearby Ely, where port traffic competes for paths with mixed traffic from four other directions. Reconfiguring the layout (the long-overdue and already named Ely Area Capacity Enhancement programme) is a constant source of debate in the UK.

The rising contender

If Felixstowe is to lose its crown, which isn’t very likely, it would probably be taken by an unconstrained site, purpose-built for the modern trading volume. That might just describe rival DP World’s London Gateway, a new-build container port in Essex, that’s rapidly emerging as a formidable challenger in the UK’s rail freight sector. Opened in 2013, just 70 miles (112km) south of Felixstowe, the port has been designed with scalability in mind.

Currently, it dispatches around 22 intermodal trains daily, connecting to major freight terminals across Great Britain, including Hams Hall, Trafford Park, Liverpool, Glasgow, Cardiff, and Daventry. Once daily, a shuttle operates, almost like an internal service, connecting London Gateway with DP World’s other UK facility, at Southampton. That, though, only scratches the surface. The port’s rail terminal is one of the largest in the UK, capable of accommodating six trains simultaneously. Plans are underway to develop a second rail terminal on site, which will radically increase handling capacity.

Sustainable transport options

“In rail, London Gateway is currently [handling] 22 trains a day with some additional trains starting,” said Andy Bowen, Chief Operating Officer, UK Ports & Terminals for DP World. “At Southampton, we’re feeding across the country, around 20 as well. Both ports are doing around 30 per cent rail modal share at the moment. We have an aspiration to continue to put more cargo on the rail.”

That aspiration is shared at Felixstowe. Just over a year ago, Robert Ashton, Operations Director at the Port of Felixstowe, answered RailFreight.com and emphasised the significance of expanding rail transportation options. “Increasing the proportion of traffic moving by rail is an important part of our strategy to offer the widest possible range of sustainable transport options through the Port of Felixstowe”, he said.

Container commodity continues growth

Historically, rail freight has played a crucial role in serving UK ports, evolving from traditional bulk cargo transport to the modern containerised intermodal services we see today. The great container terminals – like Felixstowe, London Gateway and Southampton, but also Liverpool, Tilbury, and Hull- all have an interest in rail. Similarly, ports handling traditional bulk cargo, like Immingham-Humber (Britain’s busiest port by weight of cargo moved), Newcastle-Tyne and Liverpool again, rely heavily on rail to transport bulk commodities such as biomass and aggregates.

Intermodal rail freight now accounts for about half of all rail freight traffic in Britain, underscoring its significance in the national logistics network. It is the commodity that continues to grow. While Felixstowe remains the leader, London Gateway’s rapid expansion indicates a shift in the dynamics of UK intermodal rail freight. With its modern infrastructure and strategic location, London Gateway is on track to catch its closest rival. Nevertheless, both will continue to be pivotal, at least in terms of the UK’s intermodal rail traffic.

The service operates between the Freightliner-managed rail terminal at Southampton and DP World’s own common user rail terminal at London Gateway on the north bank of the River Thames in Essex. The service began as a weekly train in November 2022. DP World say their Southampton and London Gateway train is the first “port to port” rail service in the UK.

Two become one … business unit

DP World has been steadily increasing the proportion of containers moved by rail from its Southampton terminal. A modal shift incentive – a bounty paid to shippers who choose rail for transfers up to 140 miles (224km) – has proved very popular. The company has targeted 40 per cent of all import containers leaving by rail. It’s well on target to achieve that.

The five-hour rail transfer between ports compares favourably with road alternatives. It also helps strengthen DP World’s “single business unit” operational preference for its two UK ports. “London Gateway has the ability for shipping lines, which are [booked into] Southampton, to have export cargo from that part of England and put it on the train, rather than haulage,” explained Andy Bowen, Chief Operating Officer, UK Ports & Terminals for DP World. “It has opened up an ability for imports and exports to move around. That’s why we’ve increased to five days a week from the first of October.

Cool runnings

The interport rail service allows shipping agents to use both Southampton and London Gateway as logistics hubs. DP World says there’s evidence from loadings that shippers are landing containers at Southampton and forwarding them by rail to the dedicated logistics park at London Gateway. The larger port therefore helps take pressure off its south coast compatriot.

The reliable journey time is also beneficial for cargo that requires refrigeration. Reefer traffic is a growth market in the UK. Southampton is expanding its “We already have two Maersk reefer services calling in Southampton,” said Andy Bowen, who says the shipping company benefits from the rail connection. “Some of the cargo which comes into Southampton is put on the train and ends up in the logistics park in London Gateway refrigerated warehouses.”

Running on empties

One of the Maersk services comes alongside at Southampton on Friday afternoons. Andy Bowen explains how that fits into their rail schedule. “We fill up the train with refrigerator boxes, and it goes up to Gateway, arriving about three in the morning. It’s unloaded and we shunt it into the logistics park so that we have this train to also reposition empties,” he says.

Returning empty containers is a big challenge in the UK. It’s a job that rail handles economically. Andy Bowen says that taking empties along with UK export traffic is an ability well suited to their interport rail service. Although the motive power on the run is diesel (typically a workhorse class 66), DP World is comfortable that the rail freight companies are embracing HVO (Hydro-treated vegetable oil) as an alternative fuel source.

The company is already celebrating success with its Modal Shift Programme, which in its first year removed more than 64,000 lorry journeys from UK roads. Central to that achievement has been the strengthening of intermodal services at Southampton and the expansion of an intermodal inter-port rail link with London Gateway, DP World’s other UK property.

Targeting trains for modal shift

Southampton is already Britain’s leading deep-sea port for container rail traffic, handling more than thirty per cent of all imported laden containers by train. DP World wants to push that further, setting a new target of forty per cent by 2026. Meeting the goal will mean hundreds of thousands more containers moving inland by rail instead of road, reducing congestion around the port and removing millions of road miles annually.

According to DP World, the growth in rail share at Southampton has already been transformative. A decade ago, just over one in five boxes travelled inland by train. Today, more than three in ten do. The new target represents not just a technical ambition but a statement of intent, signalling the company’s commitment to sustainable logistics in the UK.

More London Gateway–Southampton rail links

A high-profile part of this effort is the inter-port intermodal service connecting Southampton with DP World’s London Gateway hub. Launched as a weekend-only operation, it has now been expanded to run twice weekly, with Freightliner introducing a new mid-week service from 1 October 2024. The additional working doubles capacity between the two ports, creating new options for shippers and strengthening resilience in the face of supply chain disruption.

By shifting containers between ports on rail rather than road, DP World is cutting carbon emissions while providing operational flexibility for customers. Cargo can be landed at Southampton and seamlessly transferred to London Gateway’s logistics park, the largest of its kind in the UK. The inter-port link is now seen as a testbed for wider intermodal innovation, directly supporting the modal shift agenda.

Carbon savings and supply chain resilience

DP World says its Modal Shift Programme, under which the Southampton–London Gateway link sits, is already delivering measurable benefits. More than 64,000 lorry trips have been eliminated in the past year, saving around one million road miles. The additional mid-week service is expected to compound those gains, ensuring capacity is available when demand peaks.

The inter-port shuttle also helps reduce the risk of congestion at either hub. Containers that may otherwise have been delayed can be transferred and processed at the alternate site, keeping cargo moving and reducing bottlenecks. This kind of operational flexibility is becoming more critical as global supply chains face ever more frequent shocks.

Capacity enhancements down the line

DP World is not only focused on services. At London Gateway, the company has committed more than £1 billion (€1.18bn) in expansion projects, including the construction of a second rail terminal to support growing volumes (as reported by WorldCargoNews.com, our sister service for maritime affairs and trade). The Southampton–London Gateway shuttle is expected to play a part in feeding that new facility, once operational.

The investment underlines DP World’s belief in rail as a core element of its UK offer. By 2026, with the Southampton target achieved and London Gateway’s capacity increased, the company expects to have significantly boosted its share of rail-connected cargo. For an industry under pressure to deliver on decarbonisation, that shift would mark a step change in how Britain’s containerised freight is moved.

Shifting containers in 2026 and beyond

The forty per cent by rail goal at Southampton is ambitious. DP World argues, however, that it is both realistic and necessary. The port operator notes that rail has become central to its operations and that it intends to deepen that commitment by investing in capacity, services, and innovation to deliver greener, more resilient supply chains.

With inter-port rail now firmly established and major investments underway, DP World appears confident that the coming years will deliver a modal shift at scale. That ticks all the boxes for the UK government’s net-zero ambitions too. If Southampton reaches the forty per cent benchmark, it will not only confirm the port’s status as the UK’s leading rail-connected terminal but also set a template for modal share growth across the wider network.

A rethink of shipping routes, known as trades in the business, has seen a significant relocation of cargo volumes linked to the newly formed Gemini Cooperation. London Gateway operators, DP World, have been on an expansion drive at the port on the Thames, and have welcomed additional port calls. That’s been good news for rail freight operator Freightliner, which has risen to the challenge.

Operational challenge

The Gemini Cooperation is a new vessel-sharing alliance between global shipping giants Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd. The tie-up between the two global shipping lines began operations earlier this year and has been extensively reported by our sister service, WorldCargo News. As part of the Gemini Cooperation, the two shipping carriers are restructuring their port calls and inland transport arrangements, leading to a redistribution of cargo volumes across world ports, including a shift of some services calling at Felixstowe to London Gateway.

Freightliner, which operates the UK’s largest maritime intermodal logistics network, mobilised additional resources in less than five months to meet the requirement. “Freightliner mobilised and were able to solve this enormous operational challenge in under five months – providing several key benefits for all our customers,” a company spokesperson said.

Seemless change

The changes include a revised and optimised train plan, faster train paths to improve efficiency, and an increase in the number of electric locomotives used across Freightliner’s network. While London Gateway’s rail infrastructure is not currently electrified, Freightliner is deploying electric traction where possible on wider routes to support lower-carbon freight movements.

“It is testament to the staff, the network, our assets and skills within Freightliner that we have managed to shift operations from Felixstowe to London Gateway in such a short period of time – working collaboratively with several key stakeholders to ensure a seamless change for our customers,” the spokesperson added.

Aggressive growth

Freightliner’s national network connects all major UK deep-sea ports with inland rail terminals, alongside its operations in the bulk materials and heavy haulage sectors. Despite the shift of some services to London Gateway, the Port of Felixstowe remains the UK’s busiest rail freight terminal and continues to handle significant intermodal volumes.

Industry observers expect strong demand to support ongoing rail service development at Felixstowe, even as the owners aggressively court new services at London Gateway. The UK Government has expressed a number of commitments to a net-zero economy, including encouragement to grow rail freight operations by at least 75% by 2050.

The owners have wasted no time in moving ahead with expansion. After DP World was granted planning approval just a few weeks ago. The self-styled global logistics giant is pressing ahead with the £1bn project. They say it will help establish London Gateway as the UK’s biggest container port.

Shipping switch from Felixstowe

The news that DP World intends to build a second rail terminal at London Gateway comes on the back of recent significant wins in the shipping world. The port has been the winner in a deal called the Gemini Collaboration, between two of the world’s largest shipping companies, Hapag-Lloyd and Maersk.

The Gemini Collaboration partners had already announced that they were switching some port calls away from Felixstowe to London Gateway. That news precipitated a shakeup of inland services at Felixstowe, including rail freight consignments. Felixstowe itself is involved in the global sale of Hutchison Ports properties, as reported in depth by our sister service WorldCargo News.

Could Ely miss out?

The loss of Gemini port calls has already prompted a scaling back of rail services at Felixstowe, and casts a shadow over calls for infrastructure development there. There is renewed concern over the long-awaited Ely Area Capacity Enhancement project promoted by the UK infrastructure agency Network Rail. For now though, despite the ambitions of its rival on the Thames, Felixstowe remains both the UK’s busiest container port and the busiest rail freight terminal.

London Gateway, which sits within the Thames Freeport footprint, has been rapidly expanding. Construction work to expand the logistics handling capability is to begin within a month. The new logistics park will take four years to complete say DP World. Construction will support one thousand jobs, and operations will create 400 permanent posts.

Supporting national economic growth

DP World says it has worked at pace to gain regulatory approval for the investment, which was first announced by CEO and Group Chairman Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem at the UK Government’s International Investment Summit in October 2024. Relations between the company and the UK government appear to be more cordial after that event. A since resigned minister had made public criticism of DP World over controversial employment practices at their subsidiary company P&O Ferries.

The expanded container port, part of the Thames Freeport, will be able to accommodate six of the world’s largest container ships, which will be served by Europe’s tallest quay cranes. Those ships can carry up to 24000TEU – potentially meaning up to 72,000 40-foot containers could be at the port simultaneously. However, it’s unlikely all that cargo would ever be destined for one destination. Global shipping works like the ‘pick-up goods’ trains of old – albeit on a vastly larger scale.

Global hub of operations

“This investment enhances London Gateway’s capacity and new connections between the UK and the global economy,” said Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, CEO and Group Chairman of DP World. Last week, he hosted the UK Minister of State for Investment, Baroness Poppy Gustafsson at London Gateway to discuss the project. “The UK is open for business and DP World’s major investment is the latest vote of confidence in our economy, delivering economic growth,” said Baroness Gustafsson. “DP World’s expansion in London Gateway will turbocharge the UK’s logistics sector and help deliver the long-term, stable growth that supports skilled jobs and raises living standards across the UK.”

Over 1,000 construction jobs will be created during the £1bn expansion. Approvals for DP World’s project were secured following close collaboration with the local administration at Thurrock Council and the UK Government’s Marine Management Organisation. The start of construction follows the agreement between DP World and the Gemini Cooperation (Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd) for Asia-Europe and Middle East-Europe shipping services to call at London Gateway. The first ship arrived earlier this month.

In the UK, DP World also operates a busy container terminal at Southampton, where an incentive scheme encourages shippers to move inbound containers by rail.

RailFreight Summit

Terminal operations  and the synergies between rail and ports will be one of the main highlights at the RailFreight Summit, taking place in Gdansk, Poland on 8 and 9 April 2025. Sessions will include panels with port authorities and terminal operators. You can find out more about the programme here and get your ticket here.

Ultra-Large Container Vessels are a thing

Alliances at sea are nothing new. The Danish line was in bed with MSC until earlier this year. They jumped ship, as it were, and announced a new partnership – called Gemini – with their German neighbours Hapag-Lloyd.

The Gemini partnership dropped anchor last week, with a major splash. Our sister platform, WorldCargo News, broke the story. The Maersk side of the partnership has chosen to vacate their berths at Felixstowe. Instead, they will make London Gateway the UK hub for the Gemini Cooperation. That means that Ultra-Large Container Vessels (ULVCs) will be sailing up the Thames instead of the River Orwell, as of 1 February 2025.

Rail freight options for last mile – even if it’s 100s of miles

These huge vessels carry enormous loads. ULVCs carry up to 12000 forty-foot containers, or 24000 TEU (twenty-foot equivalents). However, it’s probably a blessing in disguise that they do not generally sail port to port, with all that load for one destination. Instead, they are deployed on “trades” – routes around the world, picking up and depositing parts of their load along the way. It’s a maritime version of an old-style pickup goods train – except on the vast, global scale of modern trade logistics.

Nevertheless, that can still mean several thousand containers being discharged and loaded at each port call. These calls include big British ports like Felixstowe and London Gateway, as well as Tilbury, Southampton and Liverpool. Many smaller ports are also served by “Short-sea” transfers, using relatively smaller ships on shorter voyages, sometimes domestically between British ports. Increasingly, though, transfers within Great Britain are fulfilled by rail freight options – notably the Southampton to London Gateway working, or some longer hauls, like Tilbury to Grangemouth, for example.

Training by: the shipping forecast

London Gateway, owned by DP World (global rivals to Felixstowe owners Hutchison) has made no secret of their rail freight ambitions. The Dubai company recently announced plans to double capacity at the port on the Thames, with the development of a brand new rail terminal. Clearly, the Gemini move will go a long way to justifying that investment. The speculation is that the intentions of the new partnership may well have been more than an influence.

The impact on rail freight traffic from Felixstowe will be immediate. It may not necessarily be long-lasting. London Gateway’s stated ambition to become the busiest rail freight port in the UK will leap forward, but it may not have won the race just yet. Here is the Shipping Forecast for rail freight: Swell in the Thames area. Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd, merged to give longer periods of Gemini. South from Felixstowe, rising around London Gateway. Intermodal traffic falling, then rising at new location. Outlook: Uncertain.