WORK is to begin shortly on a fourth berth at DP World's London Gateway port at Corringham.

Confirmation of the development was made at the official launch of the new Thames Freeport, a partnership between London Gateway, the Port of Tilbury, Ford at Dagenham and the Thames Enterprise park supported by Thurrock Council and other organisations.,

Government ministers attended the launch event at London's Savoy Hotel, including Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak and Transport Secretary Grant Shapps.

Mr Sunak said: "Our new freeports will create national hubs of trade, innovation and commerce, and attract more investment to regenerate communities and level up the UK.

"Bringing ports and business together to invest in their regions is crucial to the freeports success story – that's why I'm thrilled that DP World is investing £300 million to support Thames Freeport – creating new opportunities, boosting growth and supporting local jobs."

Thurrock Council's lead councillor for regeneration,. Cllr Mark Coxshall, said: "I was delighted to attend the event, another giant leap forward for the Thames Freeport and Thurrock following the commercial launch.

"This further cements Thurrock's status as the ports capital of the UK and a leading player within the national economy. We are determined to seize this opportunity to level up our communities and unlock countless opportunities including thousands of new jobs for residents who live and work in our borough."

Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Group Chairman and CEO of DP World, said: "I am delighted to announce that we will go ahead with our latest major investment in the UK, which will give London Gateway more capacity to handle the world's largest vessels than any other port in the country.

"As a central pillar of Thames Freeport, London Gateway's new fourth berth will allow even more customers to benefit from world class ports and logistics, with unrivalled global connectivity, on the doorstep of Europe's largest consumer market. DP World plans to be at the heart of Britain's trading future and this investment shows that we have the ambition and the resources to boost growth, support businesses, create jobs and improve living standards."

In the first six months of 2021 London Gateway saw throughput of 888,000 containers, a more than 23 per cent increase on the previous best performance for the first half of a year. The new fourth berth will raise capacity by a third and completion will coincide with the delivery of a new wave of vessels capable of carrying 24,000 containers.