Material for new factory by rail

Construction of a £2.6 billion factory in the North East to produce batteries for electric road vehicles is proving to be a windfall for rail freight.

GB Railfreight has begun the shipment of aggregate from Shap Summit Quarry on the West Coast Main Line to Battleship Wharf in North Blyth (Northumberland).

One train a day will run until September, when the service will then be doubled until probably next March. GBRf’s Class 66 locomotives are running with 22 MJA wagon formations.

More than 300,000 tonnes of material is needed for the foundations of the new plant, which should begin mass production at the end of 2023.