More than 20 years since it last handled cargo, a wharf in the Royal Docks has officially been reopened.
Peruvian Wharf tenants are expected to handle more than 400,000 tonnes of cargo - keeping more than 20,000 lorries off London roads - each year.
One of 50 wharves on the Thames safeguarded for cargo handling, Peruvian was bought for £3million by the Port of London Authority (PLA) in late 2016 after sitting vacant during 17 years of legal battle to bring it back into use.
The PLA invested another £3m in preparing the site for the development of marine operations.
Principal tenant Brett Group has already started operations at Peruvian after developing a building materials terminal there.
London deputy mayor for planning and regeneration Jules Pipe said: "It is great to see sites like Peruvian Wharf brought back into use and to recognise that traditional activities like moving cargo by river are as relevant as ever in our growing capital city.
"This site now serves as an important part of a vital industrial area along the Royal Docks.
"It will play a key role in the mayor's plans to take more lorries off congested roads and supply materials for the construction of some of the 66,000 homes a year that London needs."
In 2018, more than two and a half million tonnes of materials was moved by the Thames.
Speaking at the site, PLA director of planning and environment James Trimmer described the re-opening as a milestone for the river and the authority.
"At Peruvian today we have a ship working cargo at the heart of a cluster of industrial uses," he said.
"This is something we're committed to developing further.
"Through our Investment Plan we recently acquired the adjoining Royal Primrose Wharf for cargo handling use, too."
Every year, London requires 10 million tonnes of aggregates for the construction of new homes, workspaces and infrastructure.
Brett development director Oliver Brown said: "Our batching plant at Peruvian is ideally located to meet the demand for construction materials for housing and infrastructure projects in rapidly developing east London.
"At the same time it keeps the impacts on local highways and air quality caused by construction traffic to a minimum."
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