On 28 September Felixstowe, which is the largest freight container port in the UK, opened two new berths. They will be the only container berths in the country which are large enough to handle the largest container ships which are currently on order. It is hoped that the new development will create around 1,500 jobs.
The expansion of Felixstowe is expected to add approx £20 bn to the £60 bn of imports and exports which pass through each year. Large containerships from East Asia only stop three or four times at ports in Europe. Felixstowe hopes that the new berths will mean that the ships will be able to call there in future.