Significant Day Deep Water Container Freight Port as Work on Logistics Distribution Hub Starts

UK – As foretold in our story earlier this week a ground-breaking ceremony has been held at DP World’s London Gateway Logistics Park to mark the start of construction on a 316,000 square foot distribution facility. With development of the deep water container port’s quayside activity now well under way this is a significant step forward for the infrastructure of the giant logistics park planned to sit directly behind the dockside freight handling facilities.

The ceremony took place on Friday, 6 February and was attended by Jamal Majid Bin Thaniah, Non-Executive Director and Vice Chairman for DP World, Mohammed Sharaf, DP World Group Chief Executive, and Hamid R. Moghadam, Chairman and Chief Executive for industrial property giant Prologis. The new single-sided 15-metre high distribution centre, which has been designed to offer flexible distribution space, will have a 55 metre yard, plus space for expansion and will benefit from multimodal accessibility via sea, rail and road. Hamid Moghadam, Prologis Chairman and CEO, said:

“With its multimodal connectivity and location close to one of Europe’s most vibrant cities, the London Gateway Logistics Park represents the future of the logistics industry. Demand has been strong in this market and this property, which is next to the first deep-water port built in the UK for over a generation, will cater to customers who want efficient, state-of-the-art distribution facilities.”

The development, which also comprises more than 10,000 square feet of office space, is being built on Europe’s largest logistics park, which provides 9.25 million square feet of development space. The facility, which has been designed to achieve BREEAM ‘very good’ accreditation and the best possible Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) for its size, is being constructed by Buckingham Group. Jamal Majid Bin Thaniah, Non-Executive Director and Vice Chairman for DP World, said:

“Marking the start of work on our joint venture with Prologis is an important milestone for DP World and I am pleased to see this new development at London Gateway Logistics Park.”

The unit is scheduled to be ready for occupation by the third quarter of 2015 and has the potential to bring approximately 100 full-time jobs. Mohammed Sharaf, DP World Group Chief Executive said how delighted the company was to welcome the global chief executive of Prologis to break ground, commenting this was a significant step in creating more efficient supply chains for the UK whilst Simon Moore, Chief Executive Officer, DP World London Gateway, added:

“The start of construction on the joint venture development is a very important moment for the team. We are engaged in discussions with potential occupiers and we are seeing a high level of interest in the new facility.”

Photo: L to R- Mohammed Sharaf, DP World Group Chief Executive; Jamal Majid Bin Thaniah, Non-Executive Director and Vice Chairman for DP World; Hamid Moghadam, Prologis Chairman and CEO; Simon Moore, Chief Executive Officer, DP World London Gateway.