Operator P&O Ferries which closed the Dublin-Liverpool route last month, has announced a new ro-ro freight route in the North Sea, between London (Tilbury 2) and the Dutch port of Rotterdam (Europoort) which is to start in March.

The UK-Netherlands route will complement P&O Ferries’ existing route to Belgium, the London-Zeebrugge route which together strengthens its rail-connected hub in Rotterdam.

Peter Hebblethwaite, P&O Ferries’ CEO, said: “The opening of our new route between London and Rotterdam gives P&O Ferries a unique network in the North Sea. We now have five hubs: Hull, Teesport, Tilbury, Zeebrugge and Europoort, connecting the north-east and south- east of England with the continent".

“We will offer our freight customers the earliest arrival on the Thames from Rotterdam, along with swift access to the M25 and terminal rail connections.

“The opening of the London - Rotterdam route will mark another significant step in our business transformation and further contribute to the end-to-end logistics service offered by our parent company, DP World.”

The new route will be served by the 125 freight-unit capacity Norbank, which in a ropax role recently ran on the Irish Sea route which closed with a final sailing from the Irish capital on 20 December.

The 17,464 gross tonnage vessel, Afloat.ie tracked the final departure from Merseyside on 26 December with the vessel arriving at the Dutch port two days later from where it will sail on a daily schedule with customer-focused sailing times including an early arrival in London, enabling on-time local delivery.

P&O Ferries operates services in the North Sea from three east coast UK ports – Hull, London and Teesport – and two ports in northern Europe at Zeebrugge,Belgium and Rotterdam.

Norbank, Afloat also adds is currently providing dry-dock relief cover on vessels that routinely serve the Hull-Rotterdam route.