IEC/IEEE 80005 is the main standard for shore power. This standard categorically divides shore power plugs and sockets into low voltage shore connection systems (LVSC < 1 MVA) and high voltage shore connection systems (HVSC > 1 MVA). LVSC systems are governed by IEC/IEEE 80005-3 for operability and IEC 60309-5 for dimensions. HVSC systems are governed by IEC/IEEE 80005-1 for operability and IEC 62613-2 for dimensions.

On behalf of the Province of South-Holland, Sustainable Ships has been project leader of 'Project BOEI’, a techno-economic feasibility study on the electrification of tankers off the coast of Scheveningen, Netherlands. The study was performed with consortium members InnovationQuarter, Bluewater, Knutsen, EOPSA, Rijkswaterstaat, Campus@Sea, Port of Rotterdam, KVNR and Cavotec. This lunch and learn is the recording of the close-out session in which main findings were presented.

Project BOEI is a techno-economic feasibility study on behalf of the Province of South-Holland on the electrification of tankers at the Scheveningen anchorage. The goal is to identify the most feasible technical solutions and risks, in addition to cost and emissions reduction estimation. Primary drivers are reduction of NOx and CO2 emissions. Total costs for all scopes combined is €14M (~€12M for infra and ~€2M for ship). E-anchor and subsea cabling are approximately 50% of all cost. Break-even price parity for shipowner and provider of power is at around €0.20-€0.25 per kWh.

Maersk’s Stillstrom and North Star have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to accelerate the adoption of offshore charging and vessel electrification technologies for Offshore Support Vessels (OSVs) in the offshore wind sector. Offshore charging hubs will enable the vessels to recharge their battery systems using wind energy while in the field.

This is a case study of a trailing hopper suction dredger with 14MW installed power - the ‘Happy Hopper’ - which is converted to methanol combustion. This case study is inspired by the amazing work done by Van Oord. With the given assumptions on emission factors for methanol, 93% CO2 reduction is achieved. CAPEX for a methanol refit of this size is approximately €6M+, of which roughly €5M is intended for engine refit only. OPEX will be greatly increased unless methanol price is below €500 per mT.

Damen’s first all-electric harbour tug, the RSD-E Tug 2513, is a high-powered tug with 70-tonnes bollard pull, capable of manoeuvring even the largest vessels. It can undertake two or more assignments before being recharged, which takes just two hours. The battery pack size is 2,800 kWh, resulting an approximately 1,400 kW of charging power required. The battery pack is design for the vessel’s 30 year lifetime.

This blog is a state of the use of methanol as marine fuel as “quick” reference for shipowners. Key points include costs for retrofitting the ship and engine, range between € 250-€650 per kW, elaboration on IGF code for low flashpoint fuels and technical considerations for conversion and working with methanol. Availability for methanol is good, but bunkering for large vessels mostly non-existent. Methanol price per kilogram is historically lower than regular MGO.

Marine exhaust gas heat recovery systems can be a useful measure to reduce fuel consumption by 5% for typical cases, with up to 15% for favourable engine and ship characteristics. As a rule of thumb, heat exchangers become more efficient and cost-effective the larger your engine becomes. Conversion of heat to electricity is recommended for diesel-electric vessels, as well as the use of engine cooling water instead of exhaust gas heat.

Most ports have the ambition to become carbon neutral by 2050. This typically excludes vessel emissions and focusses on Scope 1/2 port operations only. A significant portion of ports around the world have signed shore power declarations to ‘deploy shore-side electricity by 2028 where possible’, including all large North Sea ports, Los Angeles, Montreal and all large Japanese ports. Cruise and container vessels are the primary target for most ports’ regulations and EU will start taxing vessels via EU ETS from next year onwards.

Four out of the five largest shipping companies have the ambition to be carbon neutral by 2050. Most shipping companies focus on alternative fuels for combustion. Preferred fuels that are currently considered are (bio)LNG and methanol.

Virtually all energy majors have 2050 as target date for carbon neutrality. Most focus solely on Scope I and II emissions. Ørsted and Equinor have the highest ambitions and most stringent targets. Repsol, Eni, Shell, TotalEnergies and BP are following suit.

In the next four years, you will be faced with a carbon tax of €200 - €300 carbon tax per mT fuel, mandatory use of shore power and low carbon fuels due to a these five regulations: FuelEU Maritime, EU ETS, AFID, RED, ETD.

This blog provides an overview of (European/Dutch) shore power sockets and plugs. They are categorized into three groups, depending on a ship’s installed power: below 100 kW, below 2.000 kW and above 2.000 kW. Especially below 100 kW, there is great diversification of plugs which would merit the creation of a ‘universal adapter’ for ships. Share your experience to help other shipowners.

Specific Fuel Consumption (SFC) of marine engines ranges between 155 and 200 g/kWh on optimal load settings, mostly dependent on engine speed (low, medium, high). Specific fuel consumption increases dramatically for approach at low power (30% Pmax) and especially at idle (7% Pmax).

Almost all rules and regulations apply to large ships of 5.000 gross tonnage or more and will only start to significantly impact your operations and OPEX as per 2026. While some vessels remain exempt, it is to be expected all vessels will be subjected to severe carbon reduction requirements that will significantly impact operations and easily double operational costs of measures are not taken in time.

Weighted average carbon footprint of steel is 1.85* tons CO2 to 1 tonne steel produced according to Mckinsey and the World Steel Association.

In February 2022, Skoon placed a battery system on Noordereiland for the Port of Rotterdam to boost shore power for stationary inland vessels. Addressing power shortfalls, the battery supported shore power cabinets, successfully delivering up to 63A without tripping fuses, benefiting both vessels and residents. This solution also enabled supplying power to larger ships, aligning with sustainability goals and showcasing potential expansion across the city center.

The US wants the global shipping industry to reduce its CO2 emissions to zero by 2050. That target is considerably more ambitious than that of the IMO, which is to reduce CO2 emissions by at least half by 2050.

Flind is a dashboard that gives you insights on your vessel’s energy consumption and emissions. For free.

Reducing carbon emissions in the shipping sector can be hard and expensive. Carbon insetting is a way to compensate for emissions that you are unable to mitigate within your normal operations - or are too costly to mitigate - but can be mitigated at other places in your fleet or the sector. Carbon insetting is simple, scalable and perhaps most importantly: almost all vessels can do it without the need for retrofitting or upfront investment costs.