Walsh and Port of Tilbury in 20-year deal to build major new freight hubs

London river, road and rail freight solutions provider Walsh has signed a 20-year agreement with the Port of Tilbury to help meet the capital’s demand for construction materials to be delivered sustainably.

Walsh said the deal will enable it to create two new freight hubs at the port - a logistics terminal with an aggregates processing plant, and a rail-linked freight facility.

Transporting aggregates by river and rail significantly reduces road miles and traffic congestion and represents a fraction of the carbon emissions of road haulage, it added.

Walsh will bring 400,000 tonnes of secondary aggregate into Tilbury by sea and river each year from china clay producer Imerys in Cornwall. This material – known as Cornish Granite – is a by-product of the china clay industry and is rated as one of the most sustainable aggregates available in the UK.

Walsh will move into 34 Berth at the port in March 2021 and will install a new multi-million pound processing plant to wash and grade the aggregate for supply to their customers across the South East.

Peter Ward, commercial director at The Port of Tilbury said: “Walsh are an important and long-standing customer and we are very pleased to be working with them on this strategic expansion and investment in their business. The Port of Tilbury has unrivalled multimodal transport connections and businesses located at the port which together create a construction hub that benefits everyone.

"This is a strong start to the year as we get underway with the economic recovery following the pandemic and Brexit impacts. This not only supports the UK government’s ‘Build Back Better’ recovery strategy but also creates greener supply chains using water-borne and rail transport.”

Walsh MD Joe Gifford said: “We’re delighted with this deal which further extends our river, rail and road network across the South East. It also puts Walsh in a unique position to meet London’s need for construction materials in the most sustainable way possible. With aggregate recycling at its maximum in the capital – a success story we’re also proud to be part of – our new partnership with the Port of Tilbury means we can bring in Cornish Granite that would otherwise be discarded and turn it into high-quality products to support London’s development and regeneration.”

Mark Faraway, senior commercial manager from The Port of Tilbury said: “Our rapidly expanding bulks business at the Port of Tilbury provides the vital elements to ensure an efficient and greener supply chain for our customers. We have long relationship with Walsh and we are happy that we can continue this for the next two decades.”