The Port of Barcelona has connected the first-ever ship to its new Onshore Power Supply (OPS) system that supplies 100 per cent renewable energy.
This was facilitated by the new OPS system at the Hutchison Ports BEST container terminal, which made its debut by supplying 100 per cent renewable energy to the MSC Mette, a 24,000-TEU capacity containership, during the three days it was moored at the Port of Barcelona.
The OPS system has been custom-designed to avoid interfering with the usual container loading and unloading operations and is a key element for adapting the electricity supply to the specific needs of each ship and the terminal.
The connection made it possible to test the ensemble of systems that make up the OPS under real-life conditions and to confirm that it is compatible with the ship and terminal operations, reported the Port of Barcelona.
Once connected, it was also possible to test the synchronisation between the OPS and the ship’s electrical systems, which worked successfully.
The power needs of each ship can vary depending on factors such as the size or number of refrigerated containers it carries, and one of the key functions of the OPS is that it adapts the energy it receives through the medium-voltage network to these needs. In this case, the OPS supplied the MSC Mette with a total of 103,200 kilowatt-hours (kWh).
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“Connecting a containership to the electricity grid for the first time is a key step forward in the rollout of the Nexigen plan and the decarbonisation of port activity,” said Port of Barcelona President Lluís Salvadó.
“As of today, we are effectively already eliminating emissions generated by ship engines, a process that will be greatly increased once we roll out the rest of the OPS thanks to the experience that this pilot test will provide us.”
Earlier this March, the Port of Barcelona and Adif jointly launched Train Port Barcelona with 50/50 ownership.
