Green light - Tilbury to become a freeport A new freeport which is set to create 25,000 jobs in south Essex has been signed off by Chancellor Rishi Sunak. International port operator DP World and Forth Ports has won a bid to create a Thames Freeport with London Gateway, with the Thurrock-based Port of Tilbury and Ford’s Dagenham engine plant at its heart. Announcing a number freeports across the country, Mr Sunak said the special economic zones with different rules would “make it easier and cheaper to do business” laying the ground for an economic boom in the region. The joint bid by DP World and Forth Ports in partnership with Ford and Thames Enterprise Park will see a Thames Freeport, with Thurrock at its heart, attract billions in private sector investment over the next 25 years.