| Port of Felixstowe | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Click on the map for a fullscreen view | |
| Location | |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Location | Felixstowe |
| Coordinates | 51°57′18″N 1°18′36″E / 51.955°N 1.310°E |
| Details | |
| Opened | 1875 |
| Operated by | Felixstowe Dock and Railway Company |
| Owned by | Hutchison Port Holdings |
| Type of harbour | Container port |
| Size | 3,383 ha (8,360 acres) |
| No. of berths | 10 (9 Active) |
| Employees | 3,500 approx. (2017) |
| Chief Executive Officer | Clemence Cheng |
| Statistics | |
| Vessel arrivals | 3,000 sea |
| Website www | |
The Port of Felixstowe, in Felixstowe, Suffolk, is the United Kingdom's largest container port,[1] dealing with 48% of Britain's containerised trade.[2][3] In 2017, it was ranked as 43rd busiest container port in the world and 8th in Europe, with a handled traffic of 3.85 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU).[4] In 2019 it was ranked the UK's 7th busiest port.[5]
The port is operated by the Felixstowe Dock and Railway Company, which was set up under an Act of Parliament, the Felixstowe Railway and Pier Act 1875, and so is one of the few limited companies in the UK that do not have the word "Limited" in their name.[6] Much of the land on which it sits is owned by Trinity College, Cambridge, which in the 1930s bought some land near Felixstowe which included a dock that was too small to be included in the National Dock Labour Scheme. In 1967, it set up Britain's first container terminal for £3.5m in a deal with Sea-Land Service.[7] Because container shipping is much more economically efficient in bulk, this early start led to it becoming the UK's largest container port, despite its previous insignificance to the shipping market.
By 1980, Felixstowe had become the largest container port in the UK.[8] In April 1981, Dooley and Walton, two new terminals started operation.[8] Walton was owned by the Orient Overseas Container Line(OOCL) and operated separately. The port was purchased by the P&O Group in 1987.[8]
Felixstowe is owned by Hutchison Port Holdings (HPH) Group and has always been privately owned. In 1951, Gordon Parker, an agricultural merchant, bought the Felixstowe Dock & Railway Company, which at the time was handling only grain and coal.[citation needed] In 1976, Felixstowe was bought by European Ferries. In June 1991, P&O sold Felixstowe to Hutchison Whampoa of Hong Kong for £90m. Walton terminal was amalgamated and OOCL became a 25% shareholder.[8] In June 1994, Hutchison Whampoa's Hutchison International Port Holdings bought out Orient Overseas International's 25% stake in Felixstowe for £50m.[citation needed] On 21 August 2022, the first strike in thirty years occurred when about 1,900 Unite members walked out in a dispute over pay.[9]
The port has its own Port of Felixstowe Police, fire, and ambulance services.
- ^ "Journal of Commerce: THE JOC TOP 50 WORLD CONTAINER PORTS" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on 1 February 2022. Retrieved 28 January 2013.
- ^ "Port of Felixstowe :: Home". Archived from the original on 7 February 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2008.
- ^ Kremer, William (18 February 2013). "How much bigger can container ships get?". BBC World Service. BBC News. Archived from the original on 11 November 2020. Retrieved 19 February 2013.
- ^ "Lloyd's List's One Hundred Container Ports 2018 Edition". 31 August 2018. Archived from the original on 28 May 2019. Retrieved 22 May 2019.
- ^ "UKs 10 busiest ports". Archived from the original on 23 February 2023. Retrieved 22 March 2023.
- ^ "The Felixstowe Dock and Railway Company (Land Acquisition) Order 2007 (No. 3345)". Statute Law. Retrieved 23 March 2010.[permanent dead link]
- ^ Levinson, Marc (2008). The Box. Princeton University Press. p. 204. ISBN 978-0691136400.
- ^ a b c d "History". Port of Felixstowe. Port of Felixstowe. Retrieved 25 November 2024.
- ^ "Felixstowe: Strike begins at UK's biggest container port". BBC News. 21 August 2022. Archived from the original on 21 August 2022. Retrieved 21 August 2022.