Ipswich MP speaks out on Northern Bypass as MSC consortium to acquire Port of Felixstowe in £18 billion deal

Why it matters: The £18 billion ($22.8 billion) deal affects Suffolk's largest port and could influence future infrastructure investment in the region, where MSC already employs over 700 people.

The details: The agreement announced on Tuesday covers Hutchison Port Holdings' controlling interest in 43 ports comprising 199 berths in 23 countries, including Felixstowe.

• The consortium consists of BlackRock Group and Mediterranean Shipping Company's Terminal Investment Limited (TiL).

• Hutchison's ports in China, including those controlled by Hutchison's Singapore-listed company HPH Trust, are excluded from the deal.

• The sale also includes all of HPH's management resources, operations, terminal operating systems, and IT infrastructure.

What they're saying: "This is an extraordinary company under dynamic leadership," said Mark Ling , a local shipping and logistics expert and campaigner for an Ipswich Northern Bypass. "I doubt that they will allow Felixstowe to remain the 'port that time forgot' with no major infrastructure upgrades since the Orwell Bridge in 1982."

Ipswich MP Jack Abbott reaffirmed the importance of investing in Suffolk's infrastructure, primarily an Ipswich Northern Bypass, saying:

"I have been repeatedly and unequivocally clear that - while we need a range of infrastructure upgrades in and around Ipswich – a Northern Bypass is the only credible, deliverable, and long-term alternative to the Orwell Bridge.

"We cannot afford to sit idly by as other competitors are pouring billions into infrastructure, otherwise we will get left behind.

"If we do not act, the traffic chaos will continue, thousands of jobs will be lost, and our local economy will be hit to the tune of hundreds of millions of pounds too. It really is that existential."

By the numbers:

• The deal is one of the world's biggest ports sales, dwarfing the combined $4 billion sale of the Orient Overseas Container Line global ports business in 2006 and 2019.

• HPH handles about 60 million TEUs annually, while TiL currently handles more than 65 million TEUs at ports worldwide.

The bigger picture: The transaction also includes Hutchison's 90% interests in the Panama Ports Company, which has come under scrutiny from the Trump administration due to the company's alleged links to the Chinese government.

• Frank Sixt, CK Hutchison's co-managing director, insisted the sale was "purely commercial in nature and wholly unrelated to recent political news reports concerning the Panama Ports."

• The documents for the Panama Ports Company sale are expected to be signed on or before 2 April, though no timeline was given for the remainder of the portfolio.

The bottom line: A major global shipping player with existing Suffolk connections is set to take control of the Port of Felixstowe, potentially bringing new lobbying muscle to much-needed investment in infrastructure that local experts describe as long overdue.