POAL (Ports of Auckland) released the results of a study into the feasibility of using shore power for cruise ships that are berthed in Auckland NZ. ‘Shore power’ is an industry term to describe ‘plugging-in’ cruise vessels to the national grid.
The study looked at the feasibility of a range of emission reduction technologies, such as:
- Ship based scrubbers
- Shore Power (local generation including renewables, hybrid, grid supplied)
- Fuel switching (LNG, Low Sulphur Diesel, methanol)
- Land/barge based exhaust capture systems.
Viable solutions were assessed against a wide range of social and environmental attributes adding to whole of life cost. The holistic approach was adopted to offer a balanced assessment of alternatives, with consideration of stakeholder values.
The report recommended a couple of options: plan to implement shore power at 1 cruise berth in the next 5 years and/or fuel switching to 0.1% sulphur fuel.