At the terminal of Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG , the COSCO SHIPPING Taurus was charged with shore-side electricity for the first time as part of a test. The Hamburg Port Authority  will now carry out further tests so that the shore-side power stations for container ships at the Port of Hamburg can be put into operation as soon as possible.

The first ship integration test was successfully completed at the beginning of the week. COSCO SHIPPING Taurus, like all newer vessels of shipping company COSCO, is one of the models already equipped with the integrated technical components for shore power supply. The equipment and process have now been successfully tested by project partners HPA, Siemens, COSCO and HHLA.

Angela Titzrath, Chairwoman of HHLA’s Executive Board: “Shore-side power stations at HHLA’s terminals in Hamburg are an important contribution towards the decarbonisation of the port and the logistics chain. We are pleased that the shore-side power stations at our terminals have been established, making it possible to reliably supply shore-side electricity to our customers’ ships equipped for that technology. This makes the Port of Hamburg a pioneer within Europe.”

Mingfeng Wang, President COSCO SHIPPING (Europe) GmbH: “For 40 years, the shipping company COSCO SHIPPING has been linked to the Tollerort terminal through a successful business relationship. With our recent vessels, which are all already equipped with the integrated technical components for shore power supply, and shore power finally becoming available at CTT, COSCO SHIPPING and HHLA are on our way to achieve the goal of carbon neutrality, to fulfil the new requirements of the International Maritime Organization’s MARPOL Convention relating to the ‘International Shipping Regulations on Carbon Intensity’, reduce greenhouse gas emissions from vessels at berth, build a green and low-carbon supply chain, and protect the earth’s ecological environment.”

The shore-side power station at CTT is located at the mega-ship berth, where the world’s largest container ships can be handled. There are special cables at the quayside to connect the container ship to the shore-side power station. Like its sister ships, COSCO SHIPPING Taurus is equipped with the electrotechnical components and cables to take in the electricity supplied from the shore – from renewable sources. Given that the line voltage and frequency on shore is different to those on board, these are adjusted to the needs of the ship using onshore converters and transformers. This establishes compatibility between the power stations and the ship. Once the ship is supplied with shore-side electricity, the ship’s diesel engines can be turned off, significantly reducing greenhouse gases and emissions of harmful substances while the ship is at berth.

HPA is currently establishing shore-side power stations at the HHLA container terminals Tollerort and Burchardkai (CTB) in Hamburg, among others. A further power station will follow at Container Terminal Altenwerder. Under the guiding principle of “Balanced Logistics”, HHLA is developing sustainable logistics solutions together with its clients and partners and is aiming to achieve climate-neutral production across the Group by 2040.