Historic land deal helps Immingham port expansion

In one of the largest land deals done in recent years, North East Lincolnshire Council’s Cabinet agreed last week [30 November 2023] to release land to Associated British Ports (ABP).

The land includes 28 acres of allocated development land at Stallingborough Interchange, and two small areas of land in NELC ownership.

Pioneer Business Park (PBP) is a strand of the award winning South Humber Industrial Investment Programme (SHIIP) which has so far seen the Myenergi and HETA facilities developed on the site, with other projects in the pipeline.

Other elements of SHIIP include a new link road between Immingham and Grimsby which has unlocked development land and improved connectivity between the ports, and two ecological mitigation sites, the first in Europe, created to offset the environmental impact of future developments and provide a safe haven for birds. These innovative interventions have proven to be a key part in attracting large scale investment to the area.

Cllr Philip Jackson, Leader of the Council, said: “The sale has realised the opportunity to see development accelerated at Pioneer Business Park at a pace which is likely to bring with it a variety of benefits, including additional investment, facilities and jobs locally.

“I’d like to thank ABP for coming to the table with the proposals, and for creating what will be one of the biggest single developments in the area in recent times.”

ABP has also been working with other landowners in the area to assemble a wider parcel of land to concentrate these operations in. The overall deal will see ABP investing significantly to expand its port operations around Immingham after the purchase of the freehold of 227.5 acres at Stallingborough Interchange.

The prominent site is earmarked for commercial port opportunities including automotive, bulk warehousing, distribution and logistics uses, advanced manufacturing, as well as green energy initiatives.

In a prime strategic location next to the A180 and located two miles from the Port of Immingham and six miles from the Port of Grimsby, the designated employment site is one of the largest of the original Enterprise Zones in the area and is key to future proofing the continued growth of ABP’s commercial business on the Humber.

Simon Bird, Regional Director of the Humber said: “This is an important milestone in the future growth of the Humber ports. It demonstrates the need for strategic investment in land to facilitate the continued growth of ABP and to maintain the Humber ports leading position in the UK, as well as significant investment in the region for jobs.

“As demand is expected to increase for energy generation, automotive storage, bulk warehousing, and storage and distribution uses our space constraints within our ports will increase. This additional land will ensure the delivery of state-of-the-art infrastructure, facilities, and technological innovation for new and existing customers.”

Greg Lacey, Head of Property - Humber, ABP said: “It’s always a challenge to bring forward a site of such significant scale and I’d like to personally thank NELC for all the investment in time and costs to get it to this stage. We now pick up the baton to bring to fruition our shared ambition to create a major UK port logistics development.

“This is a unique opportunity, assembled by ABP working collaboratively with NELC and three other landowners. The site is the largest development land parcel in such proximity to the ports, and of significant scale versus wider opportunities in the Yorkshire region. It is unlikely any opportunity of the same size will be coming to the market for some time. The sizeable investment we have made in this shows ABP is a key player in supporting the growth of commercial activities within the region.”

Pictured left to right, Rob Morton, Lead Property Asset Manager (ABP), Greg Lacey, Head of Property (ABP), Simon Bird, Regional Director (ABP), Cllr Philip Jackson, Leader (NELC), Damien Jaines-White, Assistant Director of Regeneration (NELC), and Keith Thompson, Lead Solicitor (NELC)