The major gate to North Europe, Scandinavia and the Baltic
Being operated by Associated British Ports since 20120, the Port of Hull is a trading port located at the meeting of the river Hull and the Humber estuary.
From its medieval beginnings, Hull’s main trading links have been with Scotland and northern Europe. Scandinavia, the Baltic and the Low Countries were all key trading areas for Hull’s merchants. In addition, there was trade with France, Spain and Portugal as well. As sail power gave way to steam Hull’s trading links extended throughout the world.
Docks like Alexandra Dock were specifically opened to serve the frozen meat trade in Australia, New Zealand and South America. It must also be remembered that Hull was the centre a thriving inland and coastal trading network, serving the whole of the United Kingdom. ( Source: Hull City Council)
The Port of Hull is also the UK’s first fully-enclosed cargo-handling facility providing all-weather work for various types of weather-sensitive cargoes including steel and bagged products.
As of 2010 other facilities at the two docks included an 850,000 cu ft (24,000 m3) cold store, and passenger services to Zeebrugge.
The company AarhusKarlshamn operates a large vegetable-based oil products processing plant at the dock, and the Kingston Terminal located at the southeast of Queen Elizabeth Dock is used for import of coal products. In 2010 there were ten Ro-Ro berths in total within the two docks.
In 2013, a 1 million tonne per year capacity sea-to-rail biomass facility, with a 164 ft (50 m) silo was constructed to supply the Drax power station.[194][195] The facility was officially opened by Councillor Mary Glew Lord Mayor of Hull in December 2014.
Offshore wind
In January 2011, Siemens announced it had chosen the Port of Hull as its preferred location to develop its new offshore wind turbine manufacturing and export facility, involving a £200m regeneration of the port’s Alexandra Dock. The 130-acre site has existing planning consent for the development of a 600 m riverside berth. Please visit Green Port Hull for full details.
Types of Cargos:
1-Containers: Hull Container Terminal, operated by PD Ports, at Queen Elizabeth Dock handles over 100,000 teu each year for Samskip, which provides daily week-day sailings to Rotterdam, and MacAndrews, which provides two sailings a week to the Baltic States.
It provides over 300 m of the quay and 7.5 ha of storage for all types of containers, including refrigerated units and hazardous goods containers are also handled in King George Dock by TransAtlantic Line, serving Scandinavia.
2-Dry bulks: Hull handles aggregates, agribulks, animal feed, cement, chemicals, coal, cocoa, salt, and grain. The port has extensive covered and open storage space, with state-of-the-art handling equipment.
3-Paper and forest products: Hull is on the softwood timber trade routes from Northern Europe, Russia, the Baltic States, and Scandinavia. A wide range of paper products and specialist paper-handling vessels can be accommodated at The Finland Terminal, which has more than 70,000 sq m of covered storage. A range of forest products such as chipboard, plywood, fibreboards and veneers are also handled.
4-Fresh produce and perishables: The port is a land-and-sale point for wet fish from local trawlers and from all over the British Isles. A facility for freezer trawlers to land their catches directly into cold storage from an adjacent quay. Hull Cold Store has over 24,000 cu m cold storage and is equipped with a 10,000-pallet capacity and can freeze products down to -25º C. Hull Cold Store also has EFSIS cold store quality accreditation and USDA approval.
5-General cargo: Storage facilities for general cargo incorporate over 40 transit sheds covering 230,000 sq m and 65 ha of open storage. Groupage services and cargo consolidation are available.
6-Liquid bulks: Liquid bulk handling plays an increasingly important role at the port. The port handles a wide variety of edible oils and petroleum-based and chemical products. Facilities are available for bulk liquids to be discharged directly to road tankers or tanker barges. The port offers excellent access to European or worldwide markets for the export of finished products.
