Port of Barcelona launches onshore power supply system in container terminal

The Port of Barcelona has launched its first onshore power supply (OPS) system at Hutchison Ports BEST container terminal. 

This equipment, which is the first in a container terminal in a Mediterranean port, makes it possible to supply ships with 100% renewable-origin electricity so that they can turn off their engines while in the Port of Barcelona and thus reduce their emissions. 

The OPS system is the first to be deployed under the 200 million-euro Nexigen plan, which will enable all the wharves at the Port of Barcelona to be electrified, to reduce emissions from port activity.

This is a pilot project that, once fully operational, will provide first-hand evidence to understand the needs of this pioneering service and will allow the Port of Barcelona to become more sustainable as it moves forward together towards decarbonization. 

Pere Aragonès, the president of the Generalitat (Catalan autonomous government), stated that the OPS “is a fundamental project for the future of Catalonia,” adding that “with the entry into operation of the first charging point for ships in a container terminal we are again demonstrating Catalonia’s leading role in Europe and in the Mediterranean.” 

“In Barcelona we have taken on the commitment to become carbon-neutral by 2030. The challenge is enormous, and we must all share the responsibility and do everything we can to reduce emissions. This OPS system is a very good example of what happens when the goal is clear and shared. Today’s news is historic. And precisely for that reason it cannot be a one-off. Barcelona needs to be the port with most terminals of these characteristics,” Laia Bonet, first deputy mayor of Barcelona City Council, said.

The new OPS system was manufactured in Denmark by PowerCon according to the specific needs of the Port of Barcelona.

Once ships roll out their cables to the wharf and plug into the connection points, the electrical current can be adapted from the 25,000 volts received from the grid to the 6,600 needed by container ships, modulating its frequency to 50 or 60 Hz, according to the specific needs of each vessel, according to the port.

Around 92 connections will be made during the first two years of operation of the OPS, which will be in the pilot phase. 2,500 tonnes of CO2 will thus be eliminated annually, the port revealed.

As of year three, it is expected to progressively increase the number of annual connections, with the corresponding increase in the reduction of emissions. 

“The OPS represents a quantum leap towards our commitment to reduce BEST’s carbon footprint by 80% by 2030 and become an emissions-neutral terminal in terms of operations by 2040, a vision that is now even closer with the official certification of our carbon footprint,” Clemence Cheng, Managing Director at Hutchison Port Holdings Europe and Chairman of Group Sustainability Committee, said.

“In 2022, BEST already achieved a year-on-year 57% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in operations,” he added. 

“Having the first OPS in a container terminal in the Mediterranean demonstrates the commitment and efforts that the Port of Barcelona is dedicating to decarbonising port activity and improving air quality by fighting climate change,” stated Port of Barcelona President Lluís Salvadó.

“This is a giant step forward, the first along the path that we started with the Nexigen plan and which will allow us to move towards a more sustainable future.” 

The ultimate aim of wharf electrification at the Port of Barcelona is to improve air quality around the port.

To remind, the port recently partnered with the Port of Shanghai to explore opportunities for collaboration in innovative decarbonization projects. Both ports will foster the exchange of knowledge and experiences on topics such as innovation, standardization of digital processes, and the development of SMART ports.