Associated British Ports has said that a proposed M4 relief road will have a detrimental effect on the development of the Port of Newport. If plans are approved for the so-called ‘black route’, a bridge would need to be built, dividing the North and South docks; this would limit how mobile cranes can be deployed across the port.

ABP said this would have a major impact on the size of the vessels able to enter the port, which handles more than 1.5 million tonnes of cargo per year.

Matthew Kennerley, director of ABP South Wales, said: “As an owner and operator of ports across the whole of South Wales, we recognise the need for action to tackle the current congestion problems relating to the M4 at Newport.

However, we are very concerned about the impact that the favoured ‘black route’ will have. It will significantly reduce the existing capacity, as well as limiting future development opportunities at the Port of Newport.”

Mr Kennerley added: “All this is in addition to the impact of restricting existing use and the potential development of 12 acres of port land that falls under the ‘footprint’ of the new road.

“More than £10 million has been invested in the Port of Newport in the last 18 months alone, and we are in the process of developing a 20-year Port Development Masterplan, but the current proposals for the M4 relief road represent a real threat to these plans.”

The ‘black route’ has the support of both CBI Wales and the Welsh Assembly Government; it is opposed by the Federation of Small Businesses and by former ministers Alun Davies and John Griffiths.