American study makes strong case for greater shore power investment

 

 

A landmark study released today makes a strong case for shore power at ports across the world.

Issued by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), an NGO from Washington DC, the study is the first nationwide American port emissions screening for at-berth vessels. Using the ICCT’s systematic assessment of vessel emissions model and automatic identification system (AIS) data, the study estimates how much pollution is emitted by at-berth vessels and then identifies US ports where investments in shore power could meaningfully improve air quality in nearby communities.

The study’s estimates show that in the absence of shore power, at-berth vessels emitted approximately 27,000 tonnes of combined air pollutants (NOX, SOX, and PM10) and more than 1.4m tonnes of CO2 in 2019 (see map below). Of the 129 ports considered in this analysis, 43 high-priority ports and port groups overlapped with lower-income census tracts and areas that do not meet US Environmental Protection Agency air quality standards. 

The 22-page working paper makes a strong case for shore power – also known as cold ironing or alternative maritime power – to allow at-berth vessels to plug into the local electrical grid and turn off auxiliary engines that would otherwise burn fossil fuel to power essential operations and emit greenhouse gases and air pollutants. 

It is such a low hanging fruit in the race for reduced emissions

“US ports can use available federal funding to install zero-emission port equipment, develop air quality monitoring plans, or conduct emission inventories for more tailored emission estimates than this nationwide screening provides,” the ICCT study suggests. 

Commenting on the report, Dr Tristan Smith, associate professor in energy and shipping at UCL Energy Institute, told Splash: “This research makes a compelling case for US ports, and backs up similar studies undertaken such as here in the UK.”

Smith added: “From a climate perspective, minimise demand, maximise efficiency, electrify everything possible, hydrogen-derived fuel for the remainder are maxims for shipping as much as other parts of the economy – and have a particular synergy with objectives that minimise pollution and health impacts.”

More and more ports around the world are adding cold ironing facilities, but many in shipping are calling for far greater investments in this domain.

Interviewed for Splash’s 2024 green tech forecaster earlier this year, Jens Martin Jensen, the CEO of Athenian Tankers, commented: “I am simply amazed why the International Maritime Organization or other governmental bodies have not made shore power mandatory a long time ago as it is such a low hanging fruit in the race for reduced emissions.”

ShoreX Foundation is one organisation determined to make a difference and lobby for greater cold ironing facilities. A spokesperson for the organisation, due to officially launch early next year, told Splash today: “Shore power has been around in the public realm for over 30 years and navies across the world have been using shore power for 50 years. Whereas a few years ago, the price of equipment and renewable electricity made the investment difficult to justify economically, today, subject to port usage, it has become a real business case, especially in view of the price of carbon in the European Union and other legislations, not to mention the price of future fuels.”