SCT to build fifth deep-sea berth

Located adjacent to the current four deepwater berths at SCT, the new berth will be able to accommodate feeder vessels of up to 150 m long. The new facility, due to be commissioned at the beginning of October, will enable SCT to maximise use of its deepwater berths for deep-sea vessels, as well as allowing greater operational flexibility for handling feeder vessels.

Patrick Walters, managing director of SCT, said: “The most notable improvement in using the additional berth is that we can provide a berth on arrival for feeder vessels and offer the level of service they need to run their operations efficiently and to schedule… It is our goal to attract feeder operators back to Southampton and thus increase the number of coastal services linking Southampton with the UK’s east and west coasts, Ireland and continental Europe.”

SCT is a joint venture between P&O Ports owned by DP World (51%) and Associated British Ports (49%). It is the UK’s second largest container terminal, currently handling 12 deep-sea vessels and three to five feeder vessels each week.