When AIDAdiva docks in Stockholm on July 25, 2024, the shore power plant in the Port of Stockholm will be the first of its kind in Sweden to go into official regular operation. This means that, for the first time, cruise ships in Sweden can also be supplied with shore power during their stay in port. It took two years to develop and build the system, which AIDA Cruises helped to drive forward as a project partner.

“AIDA Cruises is the first cruise line to start using shore-side electricity in Europe. With our shipboard investments in this technology, we are actively supporting the European Union’s goals to build a shore-side power infrastructure in ports of the Trans-European Transport Network by 2030,” says Dirk Inger, SVP Public Affairs, Communication & Sustainability at AIDA Cruises.

AIDA is the innovation leader in shore power

AIDA Cruises is a driving force in the cruise industry when it comes to shore power: the company has been incorporating this technology into the planning and construction of its ships since 2004. On the shore side, more than ten years passed before AIDA Cruises started regular operations with a cruise ship at Europe’s first shore-side power plant in Hamburg Altona in 2017. The use of shore-side electricity can significantly reduce local emissions while the ship is in port.

Goal: All ports in the Baltic Sea with shore power plant

In April 2022, AIDA Cruises signed a declaration of intent with Cruise Baltic, a network of 32 ports and destinations, to use shore power in the ports of the Baltic Sea region. Shore power has been available in Rostock-Warnemünde and Kiel since 2021, in ports in Norway and the UK since 2022 and in Denmark since 2023. Since 2024, all AIDA ships departing on cruises from German ports can be supplied with shore power during their laytime.

AIDA invests in future-proof and sustainable cruises

AIDA Cruises has been investing in a future-proof and sustainable cruise market for many years. In addition to the use of shore power and liquefied natural gas (LNG) as an important bridging technology, AIDA Cruises is expanding the use of alternative energy sources to operate its cruise ships. Together with various partners, the cruise company is working intensively on further solutions. As part of Carnival Corporation & plc, AIDA Cruises is aiming for net-zero emissions in ship operation of its fleet by 2050.