The gateway site on the Mersey’s banks is boosting employment, as Alex Turner reports

TESCO and Stobart have agreed a deal that will create 750 jobs at a new distribution centre in Widnes.

The supermarket giant has signed a long lease on the 528,000 sq ft chilled distribution facility at Stobart’s inland port, next to the River Mersey.

It will replace an existing Tesco facility, in Middleton, Greater Manchester, where 620 people are employed. The Widnes site, which will handle fresh food, is scheduled to start operating in July.

The Widnes facility is part of the Mersey Multimodal Gateway (3MG) site that has been transformed in recent years by the O’Connor Group, which became part of Stobart in 2007.

Its location alongside the West Coast Main Line and near to the M6, M62 and M56 motorways maximises the efficiency of its distribution network, with Tesco wanting to utilise this for distribution to its north-west stores – which will be managed by Stobart in a separate deal.

Juliette Bishop, Tesco’s corporate affairs manager, said: “This new modern facility will allow us to greatly enhance the service to our stores and customers across the North West of England.”

“This site also offers access to alternative transport infrastructure, including port and rail, which will allow us to explore future opportunities to help us further reduce freight travelling by road.”

Tesco and Stobart already have several partnerships based around rail freight deliveries.

Stobart is looking to increase its rail freight services and has targeted 10% of its road freight to be transferred to rail by the end of this year. Its current level of rail freight saves 33.8m road miles a year, which translates into 22,400 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions.

The Tesco deal is the next step in a long-term development plan for the Widnes site. There are plans for the development of another 1m sq ft of warehousing while the site is forecast to employ 5,000 people within 10 years. David Parr, chief executive of Halton Borough Council, said: “It’s excellent news for the people of Halton, it will create new opportunities and new jobs.