NYK Line and the Port of Los Angeles have announced the first successful implementation of a direct shoreside electric power connection to a container vessel at berth.
The 6.6 KV Alternative Maritime Powered (AMP) NYK Atlas was connxected to shoreside power a few hours after arriving at Yusen Terminals on Saturday November 10th, and remained connected until its departure three days later.
The NYK Atlas is the first of thirty-eight NYK-flagged vessels that will be equipped to use shoreside electric power.
Prior to the utilisation of AMP technology, vessels at berth were powered by auxiliary engines burning diesel fuel. Over the course of the last three years, both AMP technology and much cleaner diesel fuel have become available.
According to the Port of Rotterdam, moored vessels are responsible for two thirds of the total emissions by vessels. These emissions could be reduced by giving moored vessels access to shoreside power.
While in port, ships use their auxiliary engines (AE) to produce electricity for loading and unloading activities. The use of shoreside electricity allows the resulting emissions from ships' electricity use at berth to come from power generators supplying the national grid, which are likely to have lower emission factors per MWh of electricity.
More than a year ago, the European Commission urged EU member states to encourage more ports to offer shoreside power for ships at berth.
At the time, there were only a limited number of ports around the world offering shoreside electricity to moored vessels.
In 1989, the Port of Gothenburg in Sweden converted a terminal to service ferries with shoreside electricity. In 2003, an additional terminal was converted to use shoreside electricity, this time servicing Ro-Ro vessels.
Three other Swedish ports (Helsingborg, Pitea and Stockholm) and the Belgian port of Zeebrugge also offered shore-side power.
Today, the Port of Lubeck in Germany plans to have a pilot project by the end of this year, and, if the government's tax exemption for electricity supplied to moored ships goes through, more ports are expected to invest in these facilities.
The Port of Oakland recently invested $275,000 to test liquefied natural gas (LNG) mobile shoreside power ¨C an innovative and environmentally friendly method of generating electricity for ships at dock. The test has now been successfully completed.
According to initial estimates, it would cost the Port of Oakland more than $90 million to modify its infrastructure for implementing the traditional grid-based "cold ironing" portwide, since Oakland's electrical grid does not have the capacity to handle the electricity demands necessary to accommodate the scheme. The LNG mobile shoreside power is an affordable and effective alternative.
In the Port of Seattle, Princess Cruises ships now use shoreside power.
However, "cold ironing" has not been met with unanimous global approval.
The UK government and some shipping industry leaders have reportedly slammed EU moves to implement shoreside power for ships at berth, saying that it is only one of many ways to achieve emission reduction targets.
UK shipping minister, Jim Fitzpatrick, told the UK Ports & Shipping Forum that the government is against developments that would put UK ports and shipping at a competitive disadvantage.
And it's all very well for the California Air Resources Board (ARB) to call for cargo ships to shut down their engines while docked at port and use cold ironing facilities from 2010, but many shipping companies aren't impressed.
Apart from the substantial investment required to equip ships with the appropriate technology to enable them to tap into shoreside power, it's not really a practical option for vessels with fast port turnaround times.
According to Maersk's director of operations, Soren Friis, shoreside power is not a suitable solution for all ships on a global basis. Instead, the carrier has adopted low-sulphur distillate fuels for its ships as they enter California port waters.
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