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CELEBRATING A STRONG TRADING YEAR SUPPORTING THE PORT’S REGIONAL IMPACT

Welcome to the Port of Tyne's 2023 Annual Report, where we celebrate a year of exceptional growth and innovation. With a 15% increase in turnover and an 86% rise in profits, we continue to drive economic impact in the North East. Our commitment to a cleaner, greener future is reflected in our strategic partnerships, investments in renewable energy, and pioneering technologies like the UK's first private 5G network. As we progress toward our ambitious Tyne 2050 vision, we're proud to support the community and foster sustainable development, making a lasting difference for generations to come.

We’re pleased to have released our 2023 Annual Report which celebrates a strong trading performance supporting the region’s economy, and major developments on the road to achieving our intentionally ambitious vision for a cleaner, greener future.  

During our 2023 financial year, turnover significantly increased by 15% to £55.3m. Adjusted profit before tax rose by 86% to £2.6m, enabling us to continue make enhancements and innovations for generations to come, with every penny of profit we make put back into the Port.  

The Port continues to be a major economic contributor to the region, with ARUP’s Economic Impact Assessment indicating over £720 million in Gross Value Added (GVA) was contributed to the North East in 2023, up by 4% year-on-year. 

Key factors to our year of growth included increased activity at our passenger terminal, from which DFDS operates a daily ferry service to Ijmuiden near Amsterdam (now in its 19th year), as well as a record number of international cruises (61, up from 32 in 2022) welcoming 710,000 passengersA rise in the number of cars imported and exported, working with global manufacturers including Nissan, saw the transport of 366,000 vehicles (up from 252,000 in 2022) 

Successful partnerships were maintained, with both Drax and EMR extending their contracts into the coming years. A new relationship was formed with Van Oord, which will use our Tyne Clean Energy Park as a storage and marshalling base for the foundations of its 100-turbine Sofia Offshore Wind Farm currently being built in the North Sea. All of which support our future vision to embrace the opportunities for the region in clean energy, automotive transformation and advanced manufacturing. 

Further highlights from 2023 include… 

  • Supporting the world’s largest wind farm, Dogger Bank, to draw and export clean energy for the first time.  

  • Becoming the first British major trust port to agree a £100m refinancing agreement with the UK Infrastructure Bank, Pricoa Private Capital and Lloyds Bank, which further strengthened our focus on green energy and smart logistics, showcasing investor confidence in our business strategy.  

  • The completion of our site-wide private 5G network which is also a UK first, having partnered with BT and South Tyneside Council to install 5G cameras and IoT sensors to inspect the Port estate, improving efficiency and reducing fuel usage.  

  • Investment in new technology to support our colleagues on the journey to becoming a zero harm environment, as well as receiving the prestigious RoSPA President’s Award as an acknowledgement of our continued focus on keeping colleagues safe. 

  • The introduction of a new ‘Venture Connect’ programme, which connects SMEs in the North East with investors, business coaches and mentors.  

  • Our continued partnership with the Community Foundation Tyne & Wear and Northumberland, who manage our Community Action Fund which passed a very significant milestone, having made £500,000 of grants since it was established to over 150 grassroots organisations. 

  • Investing over £20m in capital expenditure which included turning an old coal yard into a modern, fit-for-purpose infrastructure at Tyne Renewables Quay.  

  • Reducing energy consumption and CO2 emissions by a further 10% respectively. 

Matt Beeton, Port of Tyne CEO, said: “Five years ago, the Port introduced its strategy for change and its vision for the future. Tyne 2050 continues to act as a foundation as we modernise our outlook and our assets. It underpins our efforts to decarbonise, digitise and innovate across the business and, in that context, the year saw many milestones achieved. We are really seeing the benefits of this transformation and we remain excited about the huge opportunities ahead. 

“We are making great progress in our journey to becoming a cleaner and smarter port but it goes without saying that it is our fantastic team of colleagues who are at the heart of the Port and who go above and beyond every day to make a difference. As well as the many businesses who choose to partner with the Port and share our ethos for continuous improvement and innovation. Backed by strong finance and an ongoing programme of investment and improvement we are well placed as a Port, and as a region, to make headway in critical markets for generations to come.” 

Port of Tyne Annual Report and Accounts 2023. If you have any queries regarding the report please email [email protected]

Read Our Annual Report 2023
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