Potter Logistics has secured a 30 year contract worth in excess of £20m with SITA UK, leading recovery, recycling and waste management company.
Potter's rail freight terminal at the Knowsley Industrial Park in Knowsley, Merseyside has been selected by SITA UK as the preferred site for a rail connected waste transfer station. The facility supports the €1.4 billion Merseyside and Halton Waste Resource and Recovery Contract for which SITA UK has been appointed as Preferred Bidder by Merseyside Recycling and Waste Authority (MRWA) on Friday 19th April.
The new waste transfer station will handle over 430,000 tonnes of residual household waste collected annually from Merseyside and Halton region. The waste will then be transported by rail to a new, purpose built, energy-from-waste site in Teesside owned and operated by SITA UK. At this facility more than 90% of the contract waste will be diverted from landfill and used to produce energy.
Matthew Lamb, managing director of Potter Logistics comments, "This 30 year contract is unique in the energy recovery and logistics sector, and is a major coup for Potter Logistics.
"Our Knowsley rail freight terminal was chosen by SITA UK from six possible rail accessed sites in the Merseyside region as the preferred location for its new multimodal waste transfer station. The terminal benefits from the ability to handle longer, 600 metre plus trains. It also has excellent road links to the rest of the North West with easy access to the national motorway network.
"With two daily trains operating between Knowsley and Teesside, Potter Logistics intends to switch certain traffic from road to rail by utilising additional capacity on these rail services. This will secure additional freight between the ports of Liverpool and Teesside, providing an economic and environmentally friendly freight corridor."
Potter Logistics is a family owned warehouse, distribution and rail freight terminal operator with expertise in specialist industry sectors. The company has six distribution centres located in Ely, Droitwich, Knowsley, Selby, Ripon and York, three of which have rail freight terminals.