Use of maritime shore power in the UK: call for evidence

Call for evidence launches as UK government aims to accelerate the UK’s ambitions to deliver a greener, more sustainable future for the shipping industry with plans to explore the roll-out of emissions-cutting shore power at UK ports.

Shore power will be vital to decarbonising the maritime sector and improving air quality for local communities.

Currently, berthed vessels must run their onboard diesel engines to power lighting, galleys, air-conditioning and other amenities. It’s the equivalent of a car or van idling while parked, emitting polluting fumes into the air around ports and contributing to greenhouse gas emissions.

With shore power, vessels will be able to turn off their engines and plug into onshore power sources when berthed, reducing carbon emissions, noise and air pollution.

This call for evidence invites views on different aspects of supporting the deployment of shore power and the provision of shoreside electrical power to a docked vessel while its engines are shut down in the UK. The details gathered will be used to inform future policy development.

The government are seeking information on the:

-costs of shore power

-benefits of shore power, including the potential of emission reduction

-scale of vessel emissions at berth

-options to enable the rollout of this technology

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