THE man at the helm of Britain's largest ports operator has raised the controversial prospect that a container port at Dibden Bay may one day be built.

ABP chief executive Bo Lerenius, stressing it was his personal view only, said the growth in world trade and the UK economy would one day require a deep-water quay at Dibden Bay.

He said: "Although ABP has no plans to reapply for Dibden, my personal view is that, because the growth in world trade and UK plc' will require it, there will be a terminal there at some time in the future, although probably not for a number of years. This is just a personal reflection."

Mr Lerenius's comments, made to a national newspaper and confirmed by ABP, are bound to rekindle the debate over what was Hampshire's most controversial planning application.

ABP's plan for a six-berth container port on reclaimed mudflats next to Hythe was thrown out by the government on environmental grounds in the spring of 2004 after a lengthy and fiercely contested public inquiry. ABP, which this week rejected a £2.3 billion takeover offer from an overseas consortium, was left with a £50m-plus bill.

Mr Lerenius's views may surprise his staff at the port, many of whom thought Dibden Bay was unlikely to be resurrected following what was widely acknowledged as a bruising battle.

Paul Vickers, chairman of Residents Against Dibden Bay Port, dismissed Mr Lerenius' remarks as "wishful thinking". Mr Vickers said the government had approved plans to build new container terminals at Bathside Bay and Felixstowe South, and was minded to approve a similar development at Thames Gateway.

He added: "Given the amount of capacity that's coming on stream, I don't think there could ever be a commercial case for Dibden Bay."

Mr Vickers said the ABP scheme was rejected on environmental grounds and warned that any future application to build a port on the site would face similar hurdles.

ABP's core argument for expansion at Dibden Bay was that Southampton was too cramped, with the danger that container shipping lines would sail to rival ports.

Since the Dibden Bay rejection, ABP has been focusing on freeing up space at Southampton, where it employs 820 people.

As previously reported in the Daily Echo, national ship repairer A&P quit, releasing acres of land around the King George V Graving Dock.

The Royal Mail is to move its operations away, and car parts manufacturer Wix Filtration has also gone.

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