News

The Port of Dover is considering bringing in a major outside investor to help fund a £420m expansion project in the Western Docks in what would amount to an unprecedented move by a UK trust port reports the Telegraph.

It is seeking new finance to build another four roll-on, roll-off berths in the Western Docks to keep pace with the growth in cross-Channel traffic and expects the new facility to be operational by 2014.

Bob Goldfield, the Port of Dover chief executive, said in the Telegraph that joining forces with a third-party investor, such as an infrastructure fund, was "a distinct possibility.

Goldfield acknowledged that any move by Dover to bring in private capital could reignite the debate within Government over trust port privatisation.

"I know in some circles we are unfinished business and they would like to see us privatised. It's an easy hit," he said, adding: "We can request privatisation, but the present board don't want to go down that route."

Dover's profits rose 38 per cent last year to £20.6m pre-tax on revenues up £1m to £57.7m. That was in a record year for freight journeys, up by 40,000 to more than 2.36m, while tourist car traffic rose by 7.2 per cent to almost 2.84m vehicles.