The Port of Barcelona has launched the tender process for a pilot project to supply electricity to container vessels at its Hutchison Ports BEST terminal.
This pilot project, with a tender price of €5.8 million ($6.7 million) is part of Phase Zero of the Wharf Electrification Plan being developed by the Port of Barcelona and includes drafting and performance of the project, as well as the ship connection and disconnection service and installation maintenance.
With planned overall investments of nearly €90 million ($102 million), the Wharf Electrification Plan is one of the Catalan port’s major projects to halve CO2 emissions from port operations by 2030 and become a carbon neutral port by 2050.
The plan, which will enable ships docked at the wharf to connect to the general electricity grid with clean and certified 100% renewable energy, received a major boost in March 2021 when Red Eléctrica confirmed the start of construction of the new Ronda Litoral Substation, a point to which the Port of Barcelona will ask to connect. This will make it possible to develop the Electrification Plan for the ensemble of the wharves. The new 220 kV substation will be located very close to Príncep d’Espanya wharf on the south side of the Ronda Litoral ringroad.
The pilot project at the BEST terminal involves bids to build and commission the first OPS (onshore power supply) points to operate in the commercial wharves of the Port of Barcelona. In that connection, currently the first OPS points in the port area are in operation at the MB92 Barcelona facilities.
Once the BEST pilot project is underway, the Port of Barcelona will have real, useful and experience-based data on OPS performance on container vessels; it will be able to draw conclusions on best practices and identify future needs and developments, while encouraging demand for this type of system.
Damià Calvet, President of the Port of Barcelona, commented, “This set of practical knowledge and data will qualify us to collaborate in developing the future regulations that will regulate the supply of electricity to ships in both State and European ports. Last but not least, the BEST pilot project will pave the way for a new phase of development of our Wharf Electrification Plan.”
The tender procedure sent today to the OJEU for publication is open and will take into account the best value bid criterion.
