London Gateway, located about 25 miles east of central London on the north bank of the river Thames, is a staged 1.5 billion-pound ($2.3 billion) development embracing the container port itself as well as what is expected to be Europe's largest logistics park.
The world's third-largest port operator said that it would invest another $1 billion on the project over the next three years, having already spent $600 million, with construction in progress since January last year.
"The funds for the project are coming from the resources of the company and international financial institutions. They are already in place," Sultan Ahmed bin Sulayem, chairman of DP World, said in a conference call with reporters.
"These projects are not something that would be affected by the (euro zone debt) crisis. They are long term."
The port will have an initial container capacity of 1.6 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEU) and DP World said it will contribute 3.2 billion pounds ($4.95 billion) to Britain's economy every year.
In London, UK Business Secretary Vince Cable said the new port would transform the UK's maritime port infrastructure and save millions of pounds every year in land transport costs.
"It will help Britain maintain its competitiveness, drive productivity and crucially strengthen our links with Asia and beyond," he told business leaders.
DP World is considered one of the more profitable units of debt-laden Dubai World which reached a near $26 billion debt deal with creditors last year.
The port operator also said on Tuesday it has awarded four port equipment contracts, which includes a partnership with Cargotec for port automation. Cargotec said separately that the project is worth around 100-150 million euros.
The operator, which listed on the London Stock Exchange earlier this year , also reported a four-fold increase in its first-half profits as it booked gains from the sale of its Australian port operations last year. (Reuters)
