Charles Hammond to step down as CEO of Forth Ports – Stuart Wallace announced as his successor

Thursday 7th December 2023

Forth Ports’ Group Chief Executive, Charles Hammond OBE, has decided to step down from his role leading the UK’s third largest ports group at the end of June 2024. His successor will be Stuart Wallace, who is currently the company’s Chief Operating Officer.

Charles will work closely with Stuart over the next six months to ensure a smooth transition prior to Charles stepping down from the company. Stuart, who is already a member of the Forth Ports board, will take up his appointment on 1 July 2024.

Most recently, the company set out its ambitious plans to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2042 and carbon neutrality by 2032. Forth Ports is also a major partner in both the Thames Freeport and the Forth Green Freeport, which last month submitted its Outline Business Case to the Scottish and UK Governments.

The company is also a major player in the renewable energy sector. A private investment programme, totalling £150 million, has already provided crucial support to offshore wind development with the creation of bespoke renewables hubs in Dundee – currently supporting the construction of the Neart na Gaoithe offshore wind farm –and in Leith. There are also early plans to develop a floating wind hub across the River Forth at Burntisland.

Commenting on his decision to step down as Group CEO of Forth Ports, Charles Hammond OBE, said:

“It has been the privilege of my career to lead Forth Ports. From the significant growth of the business both sides of the border to the challenges of the Covid pandemic and Brexit, I have been fortunate enough to have been supported by the best team in the industry.

“The most consistent feature of my time at Forth Ports has been the stability that we have sought to create and, while I step down at the most exciting of times, I do so with the confidence that I will leave behind a business that is in great hands and very well positioned to continue to flourish.”

Stuart Wallace, Chief Operating Officer and Group Chief Executive Elect, said:

“I am proud and honoured to have been asked to lead this fantastic organisation as we face the challenges and opportunities of a just transition to net zero and the significant expansion of Scotland’s renewable energy sector.

“With the great team that we have built right across the business, I am confident that Forth Ports will continue to thrive. I am immensely grateful to Charles for steering the business into such a strong position and for his mentorship and support for me personally. I look forward to the next chapter in the Forth Ports story with relish.”

Patrick Samson, Senior Vice President and Global Head of Real Assets Investments at PSP Investments, Forth Ports’ principal shareholder, said:

“Charles will have been CEO at Forth Ports for more than 23 years when he steps down and we are grateful for his exceptional leadership and his contributions to the company over the last 12 years of our ownership.

“As we look to the future, we are excited to see Stuart succeed Charles as CEO. With his extensive operational experience and strategic mindset, we are confident in Stuart’s ability to lead Forth Ports through the next stage of its growth. We wish Charles all the best in this next phase of his career and look forward to continuing to work with Stuart and the broader management team.”

Charles was awarded an OBE in the 2020 Queen’s Birthday Honours List for services to the UK ports industry and to Scottish business and last month stood down from his role as Chair of the UK Major Ports Group after 10 years at the helm.

A qualified lawyer, Charles, who will be 63 when he steps down, joined Forth Ports when it was a publicly run ports and river authority in 1989 as Company Secretary.

He was appointed Chief Executive in 2001 and has overseen Forth Ports’ expansion to a point today when the company owns and operates eight commercial ports, including Tilbury on the Thames, six ports on the Firth of Forth and Dundee on the Firth of Tay. He also oversaw the company’s move from a publicly listed PLC to private ownership in 2011.

A qualified Chartered Accountant, Stuart Wallace (53) joined Forth Ports in 2002, initially as Financial Controller for its Scottish region, prior to being seconded to the Port of Tilbury to run general port operations and the London Container Terminal. He returned to Scotland in 2013 having been appointed Divisional Director for the company’s Scottish operations.

He was appointed Chief Operating Officer in 2017, joining the board at that point, and is responsible for all operational activities of the Group. Stuart is also a non-executive director of Business Stream, one of the top three water retailers in the UK and a wholly owned subsidiary of Scottish Water.

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Labour Leader and Shadow Chancellor visit the Port of Tilbury

Thursday 23rd November 2023

Today (23 November), Keir Starmer, leader of the Labour Party and Rachel Reeves, Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer, toured the Port of Tilbury to see first-hand the importance of building infrastructure to generate growth in the UK.

During the overview of London’s major port and its expansion plans, both politicians also received a briefing on the supply chain demands across some of the country’s fast-developing sectors, including offshore wind, hydrogen and sustainable fuels.

The team discussed how government and industry can work in partnership to create sustainable, well-paid jobs across the country through a strong industrial strategy.

As well as hearing the business’ plans for the future, Starmer and Reeves also met a group of apprentices at the forefront of the port’s important work. The port’s ongoing apprenticeship and advanced apprenticeship programmes aim to build the skills base to support rapidly growing business areas such as consumer goods, building materials and recyclables.

Forth Ports owns and operates The Port of Tilbury, alongside seven other commercial ports on the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Tay: Grangemouth, Dundee, Leith, Rosyth, Methil, Burntisland and Kirkcaldy. The Port of Tilbury is the number one UK port for forestry products, construction materials, paper, grain and recyclables. The port has a strong market presence in bulk commodities, containers / trailers, cars (import and export) and cruise vessels.

Welcoming Labour’s top team to Tilbury where Forth Ports outlined their net zero mission, Charles Hammond OBE, Chief Executive of Forth Ports Group (owner of the Port of Tilbury and Tilbury2), commented: “Ports are epicentres for the growing green economy. Our multi-million investment plan across our major ports – Tilbury, Burntisland, Leith, Grangemouth and Rosyth – will accelerate the nation’s path toward a decarbonised economy built upon low carbon logistics, low carbon fuels and low carbon power generation.”

Keir Starmer MP, Leader of the Labour Party, said: “Here at Tilbury Port, I was struck by the scale of the operations, the scale of the group’s green ambitions and their commitment to develop young people into the managers of tomorrow. Meeting the apprentices, it’s clear how investment into the area will smash the class ceiling and break down the barriers to opportunity for young people.

“My Labour government will share ambition like the one I’ve seen here today, driving growth and the next generation of jobs through investment in the infrastructure needed to deliver clean power. My mission-driven Labour government will get Britain building to create jobs, and deliver a prosperous economy.”

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Hundreds attend London International Cruise Terminal Community Festive Fair

Tuesday 21st November 2023

As Christmas fast approaches, the London International Cruise Terminal in Tilbury held its Christmas Fair for the community at the weekend (19 November). The event, which is in its third year, has grown from strength to strength showcasing the talents of over 50 stall holders, each contributing to the festive atmosphere with an array of beautifully handcrafted items.

The Christmas Fair is well supported by local crafters, with many of the stall holders based in the Thurrock area. The hundreds of visitors who came along were treated to a treasure trove of handcrafted gifts, from exquisite decorations to unique, locally made items. The fair not only provides a platform for these talented crafters but also fosters a sense of community pride in supporting local businesses.

The Tilbury Riverside project added to the holiday cheer serving complimentary coffee, tea, sherry and of course mince pies. The atmosphere was very jolly with hundreds of local people coming along to catch up and enjoy the festivities.

Paul Dale, Asset and Site Director from the Port of Tilbury said: “The Christmas fair raised over £1500 which will benefit both the Tilbury Riverside Project and St Luke’s Hospice. This fantastic achievement reflects the power of community, kindness and the shared commitment of making a positive impact in our local area.

“This year’s fair went beyond the joy of gift-giving, it embraced the spirit of giving back to the community. The raffle for St Luke’s Hospice proved to be a resounding success. It was fantastic to see the generosity and the enthusiasm people had for supporting a local cause.”

The London International Cruise Terminal proved to be an ideal venue for this festive gathering and The Port of Tilbury are already setting their sights on expanding the event even further next year. With the overwhelming support from the community and the success of the fair in its third year, they hope to make it an even more integral part of the Christmas season in Tilbury.

St Luke’s Hospice is a local charity dedicated to providing compassionate care and support for individuals facing life-limiting illnesses and their families. The success of the Christmas Fair’s charity raffle contributes directly to the vital services offered by St Luke’s Hospice in the Thurrock area.

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Port of Tilbury hosts The National Lottery to reveal HMT Empire Windrush sculpture

Wednesday 1st November 2023

On the 30th October we had the honour of hosting the National Lottery to showcase their new HMT Empire Windrush wireframe structure created to celebrate Black History Month and Windrush 75.

The National Lottery raises more than £30 million every week for great causes across the UK, and this year, awarded £1.2 million of this to 140 community groups commemorating Windrush 75. This month they celebrated with a showcase of a wireframe recreation of HMT Empire Windrush right where Windrush arrived at the Port of Tilbury.

The structure which is called ‘The Life We Hold’ was created by Liam Hopkins of Lazerian Studios, in collaboration with abstract artist and creative designer Jade Pearl. The design incorporates portraits of five individuals who have been able to do amazing things for the Windrush generation with funding from The National Lottery.

The team at The Port of Tilbury were privileged to host this event with singer and presenter Scarlette Douglas revealing the amazing structure on our docks, alongside representatives from the various beneficiaries of the National Lottery Funding.

This year we have pulled out all the stops to recongise the 75th anniversary of Windrush and we continue to support anyone who wishes to do so.

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Maritime Minister visits new Port to see progress

Friday 24th January 2020

Nusrat Ghani MP, Maritime Minister, visited the Port of Tilbury – London’s major port – today for an overview of the Forth Ports Group’s flagship investment – the new 160 acre port terminal, Tilbury2 – alongside the community outreach, employment and re-training programmes to support former armed forces personnel and their families get back-to-work, utilising the Tilbury on the Thames Trust’s high-tech simulator suite.

The Minister also met two female graduate trainees and heard about the Group’s efforts to promote greater gender diversity, as part of the Women in Maritime initiative.

The Minister was also briefed on Tilbury’s network of short-sea container routes to northern and southern Europe, including the latest addition – a weekly service to Portugal (Lisbon and Leixões) operated by Samskip / X-Press Containerised, predominantly for fresh produce, beverages and manufactured goods.

The £250m Tilbury2 project consists of the construction of a new port terminal and associated facilities on land at the former Tilbury Power Station on the north bank of the River Thames at Tilbury. When operational in April 2020, Tilbury2 will be the UK’s largest unaccompanied freight ferry port, the country’s biggest construction processing hub and will see the creation of a new significantly larger rail head which can accommodate the longest freight trains of 775m. The site will be trusted trader Authorised Economic Operator (AEO) accredited and will employ the latest border technology, such as number plate recognition. The marine and terrestrial construction programme is being delivered by GRAHAM.
The project is central to the Port of Tilbury’s £1 billion investment programme during 2012-20, which has seen it double the size of its business in the past 10 years and is projected to double the volume of cargo across the quay (from 16 million to 32 million tonnes) and increase direct employment (from 3,500 to 12,000 jobs) over the next 10-15 years.

“Our new port is nearing completion at a crucial time as the UK prepares to leave the European Union. Harnessing the best-in-class border processes, Tilbury2 will be Brexit ready when the first ship docks at the start of April,” commented Charles Hammond, Chief Executive of Forth Ports.

Nusrat Ghani MP, Maritime Minister, said: “Ports are at the heart of the UK’s economy and I was delighted to visit the Port of Tilbury today and see the progress being made with Tilbury2 after the major development was recently given the go-ahead by the Department for Transport.

“This is an impressive example of how we are supporting our ports to harness talent, boosting diversity and taking advantage of technologies to bolster the capabilities of nearly 30,000 people who work at the ports around the country.”

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Port of Tilbury celebrates prestigious planning excellence award win

Tuesday 26th November 2019

The Port of Tilbury scooped the inaugural National Infrastructure Planning Association Award for “Best Project” at the organisation’s awards celebration in London on 21 November for Tilbury 2.

The judges praised the team behind the DCO planning process of the new port Tilbury2 which is currently under construction and due to open in 2020. The inaugural single award by NIPA recognises best practice in participating in the Development Consent Order Process (DCO) for a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project (NSIP).

Celebrating the award success, Peter Ward, Commercial Director at The Port of Tilbury, said: “We are thrilled to have received this prestigious award from NIPA. Throughout the DCO process for Tilbury2 we wanted to ensure that best practice was paramount and we worked hard to engage fully with all our stakeholders. This win is testament to the hard work of all our team at Tilbury and our excellent team of professional advisors. Tilbury2 is our largest investment project and is key to the future success of our business.”

Angus Walker, NIPA Board Chair, commented: “NIPA is delighted, that after a thorough independent two-stage judging process, the Tilbury2 project was judged to be the winner of the inaugural National Infrastructure Planning Association Award. The Award is yet another way that NIPA identifies and shares best practice in the planning, development and delivery of nationally significant infrastructure projects, and we will be publishing case studies of the shortlisted entries shortly. Many congratulations to the Port of Tilbury and their Tilbury2 team, and our thanks to all of those who submitted entries.”

Tilbury2 is under construction on 150 acres of land at the former Tilbury Power Station on the north bank of the River Thames at Tilbury. When operational in Spring 2020, Tilbury2 will be the UK’s largest unaccompanied ro-ro freight ferry port, the country’s biggest construction processing hub managed by Tarmac, and will see the creation of a new rail head which can accommodate the longest freight trains of 775 metres.

The project is central to the Port of Tilbury’s £1 billion investment programme during 2012-20, which has seen it double the size of its business in the past 10 years and is projected to double the volume of cargo across the quay (from 16 million to 32 million tonnes) and increase direct employment (from 3,500 to 12,000 jobs) over the next 10-15 years.

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Wildlife study finds habitat created by the Port of Tilbury is now a site of national importance for invertebrates

Tuesday 15th October 2019

A wildlife area created six years ago to offset losses of habitat from the development of the London Distribution Park (LDP) at Tilbury, has proved so successful it has been ranked by one of Britain’s foremost entomological consultants as of national importance for insects and other invertebrates.

The site at Mucking Landfill was created in 2013 by spreading chalk slurry over an area equivalent to six football pitches and then placing ‘dunes’ made from waste fly ash and chalk bunds on the top. By agreement with the owners of the landfill site, Enovert South, it was then left unmanaged and allowed to develop naturally.

Monitoring studies last year found that the new habitats already supported a proportionally higher number of rare and scarce invertebrate species than had been found at the LDP site in 2011, prior to development.

Dr Mark G. Telfer, an independent entomological consultant, recorded 236 invertebrate species in the new habitat in 2018. Of these, 15% are deemed to be rare, scarce or have a threatened or near threatened conservation status. Further analysis has shown that the new habitat supports an exceptionally high quality ‘bare sand and chalk’ assemblage of species.

Ecologists will continue to monitor the site but as the initial study has been so successful the report recommends creating additional invertebrate habitats at Mucking – a scheme that is now in process to offset impacts from the Tilbury 2 development on the site of the former Tilbury Power Station.

Ecologists Bioscan UK Limited designed the wildlife area on behalf of the Port of Tilbury.

 Peter Ward, Commercial Director at Port of Tilbury, said: “The results of this study are fascinating and I am really pleased the habitat has been deemed so successful that it is now considered of national importance.

 “We take our environmental responsibilities very seriously at the Port of Tilbury and it is clear that this habitat at Mucking Landfill is supporting a remarkable richness and abundance of species while succeeding at what it was set up to do – offsetting the losses incurred from the development of LDP.

 “We will continue to work with Bioscan on future studies and hope to replicate a similar study to coincide with Tilbury 2.”

 Dominic Woodfield, Managing Director at Bioscan UK Limited, said: “The Thames Estuary is a known hotspot for rare invertebrates, but many of these species are increasingly restricted to post-industrial or brownfield sites which are often identified for redevelopment.

 “The need for an offset scheme to ensure no net loss of biodiversity from the development of the LDP presented an opportunity to try and create those post-industrial conditions from scratch.

 “We deliberately used selected waste materials from construction and industrial processes that we knew would create the right physical and chemical conditions and designed the scheme so that these would be placed and shaped in a way that would maximise their potential.”

 Mark Silvester, CEO at Enovert, said: “Restoration of Enovert’s Mucking Landfill site and the country park will benefit hugely from the valuable habitat gained from inclusion of the LDP and Tilbury 2 offset schemes. The success achieved following importation and placement of the LDP material shows how important a part landfill restoration schemes can play in delivering improved biodiversity at both a local and national level.

 “We’re delighted that the Mucking site is now home to one of the UK’s most important wildlife areas. The long-term management of this very special and important site will continue to be supported by the Enovert Community Trust in partnership with the Essex Wildlife Trust.”

 Marc Outten, Area Manager South East at Essex Wildlife Trust, said: “The results from the 2018 surveys are extremely exciting and further highlight the importance of the Thames Gateway for invertebrates of which many are rare or endangered. The partnership between the key stakeholders will not only maintain that these threatened creatures continue to have a stronghold at Mucking and along the Thames, but also the chance to reconnect local communities with these important species and the natural environment in which they live.”   

Image of a Bombardier Beetle (Brachinus crepitans) found at the habitat.

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