Port of Galveston gets grant to develop shore power project
The Port of Galveston has secured a government grant worth $1 million for developing a shore power project at Galveston to reduce emissions from cargo shipping operations.
PHOTO: A vessel moving into Galveston Bay from the Gulf of Mexico. Getty Images
The pilot project intends to build “an onshore electricity microgrid to provide a clean portable power source to a docked ship as an alternative to using the ship’s diesel-fueled auxiliary engines,” the port authority Galveston Wharves said.
A microgrid is a self-sufficient and localised energy system serving a discrete geographic location.
The project will also evaluate the microgrid’s “feasibility, environmental impacts and operational data such as energy consumption and power production efficiency,” Galveston Wharves adds.
The development of the pilot project is set to begin in 2024 and finish in 2025.
The project has been funded by government agency the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) through its Texas Emissions Reduction Plan (TERP). TERP offers funding to entities to reduce emissions by upgrading to newer, cleaner technology and retiring outdated ones.
“This grant will boost our objective to offer clean shore power to cargo ships calling at the Port of Galveston,” Galveston Wharves port director and chief executive Rodger Rees says.
US-based college Texas A&M University will partner with the Port of Galveston for the pilot program.
Shore power or “cold ironing” has been gaining traction across port operators and ship operators globally to reduce emissions while a ship is berthed.
According to the classification society DNV, there are currently 118 facilities across ports globally offering shore power to vessels, with 47 more planned and four under discussion.
By Tuhin Roy
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