Thanet council is expected to agree to transfer a further £4.12m of Levelling Up funding to a Ramsgate Port and infrastructure project.
The project is part of Ramsgate’s £19.8m Levelling Up programme granted by government in October 2021.
Some £9,615,100 has been earmarked for port projects, which include a Green Campus scheme, with £3.5 million of this for improved port infrastructure.
However, a report to councillors earlier this year said port infrastructure work is likely to need £10m, far exceeding the £3.5 allocated for site clearance and remediation; improved breakwater and new berthing infrastructure.
The Port Infrastructure project includes the refurbishment of berths 2 and 3, and land based works needed to support ro-ro ferry operations, including facilities for UK Border Force.
A new report to councillors now says the infrastructure costs are estimated to be closer to £14m including professional fees, risk allowance and contingencies for the required investment to the port estate, berths and dredging.
The recommendation is that £3.55million, initially allocated to the improvement of fishing facilities, and a further £570,000, previously set aside for an overnight accommodation project at the Sailors’ Church/Smack Boys Home , are reallocated to the Port Infrastructure project, increasing the total budget available from £3.08million to £7.2million.
The Cabinet report also proposes that £4.5million from the increased project budget should be offered to the successful port concession operator as a grant payment, to contribute to the cost of the works required to make the port ready for concessionary use. The balance of the funding will be retained for works to be delivered by Thanet council. The lease would be for 20 years with an option to extend for a further five years as opposed to the original plan for a 10 year, plus extension, lease.
The decision to offer a concession and lease, via an open tender process, was made in March 2023. Cabinet approved a number of recommendations for a multi-use port which includes the current wind farm operators and Brett Aggregates.
Originally, the council had intended to undertake the port infrastructure works but says this is no longer possible with the current funding due to cost hikes, including a rise in inflation experienced which is estimated to have increased costs overall by 20-30%.
A report to councillors say: “Based on replacement of the current infrastructure (which may not be exactly what a successful bidder would require) and the necessary dredging, the current estimated cost of the necessary works for a 20+5 year concession is £16.92m including professional fees, risk allowance and contingencies. This compares with the £14.09m total cost for a 10+5 year concession option. The final costs will depend on the works carried out. Much of the infrastructure is under water and is difficult to assess.”
The fishing fleet project will be left with a £100,000 budget for a smaller scale scheme.
The original plan was to create a site for the local fishing fleet where they could unload, freeze, store and process their catch. With the ability to process fish and seafood on site the fishing fleet would have been able to increase their income from each catch.
A scheme was developed jointly with the Thanet Fishermen’s Association (TFA). During Autumn 2023, following a period of engagement with the council, design team and the TFA on size and design of the facility, the TFA confirmed that their members were unable to financially commit to the maintenance and operation of a new facility, given the current state of decline in the fishing industry in Ramsgate.
In April the TFA put forward proposals for smaller scale improvements including better refrigeration, ice making facilities and fencing requiring the smaller £100k budget.
The report to councillors says the Sailors Church/Smack Boy scheme is now unviable.
It says: “The Visitor Accommodation Opportunities project (amended from the Smack Boys Restaurant with Rooms project) as part of the simplification pathfinder in September 2023 is no longer deliverable.
“It had been intended by ring fencing some investment for visitor accommodation opportunities, to identify a way in which an interim use could be created at the harbour for overnight accommodation. This ‘meanwhile’ use could then have informed future investment. The task of identifying a site and developing compatible scheme options when considering the Grade 2* and Conservation Area status of the harbour estate has proved to be too challenging to deliver in the available timescale.”
A port concession tender is due to be published at the beginning of August.
The report also says Brett Aggregates has expressed an interest in a further two acres of land alongside their existing site to allow the expansion for aggregates.
The report says: “It is now planned to pursue the Brett’s interest as a separate negotiation informed by an independent valuation of the land. The part of the port required for ro-ro operations can be operated without those additional two acres and the council would have the opportunity to renegotiate the existing Brett Aggregates lease.
The report says this would mean income through an additional volume of aggregates handled at the Port, additional port dues associated with an increased frequency of vessel arrivals and from rent associated with a new lease for the additional land taken.
Council leader Rick Everitt said: “The Port of Ramsgate is a hugely important asset for Thanet and is also a strategically important asset for the country. We have an opportunity to get the port to a position of financial stability and sustainability. It could result in steady income for the council and additional resilience for UK freight logistics. It’s important that we get this right.
“I appreciate the work officers have done thus far to develop the procurement approach as previously agreed. I look forward to discussing the proposals to revise the funding allocations with members of the Cabinet and reaching a consensus on the way forward.”
Potted port operations history
Construction of the port started in 1979 with commercial activities beginning in the summer of 1981. The port expanded rapidly throughout the 1980s to meet the demand for cross channel services with three roll on roll off (ro-ro) berths serving vessel arrivals on a 24/7 basis.
For the first 17 years of operation the private company Port of Ramsgate Ltd operated the commercial port. In 1998 following the cessation of Duty Free concessions, the two ferry operators, Sally Ferries and Ostende Lines withdrew their cross channel services and the port operator, Port of Ramsgate Ltd, ceased trading. In that same year the Council took the decision to start operating the port directly.
The council successfully attracted a new operator, TransEuropa Ferries, which ran freight and car passenger services to Ostend for 15 years, until 2013 when it went bankrupt and left Thanet council with £3.4 million in unpaid berthing fees.
The report to councillors says Port of Ramsgate has been underperforming for more than 10 years, adding: ” It has seen some successes through diversifying trade and by securing ad hoc business, most notably cross channel trade car imports from 2016-2020.
“However there is a firm objective to revitalise the port as a regionally strategic asset and achieve sustainable income.”
The issue will be discussed at a Cabinet meeting at 7pm on Thursday 25 July. Members of the public are welcome to attend in person or to view the meeting via the Thanet District Council YouTube channel: youtube.com/@ThanetDistrictCouncil
