• The Spanish Council of Ministers, at the proposal of the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility, has authorised the tendering process for the construction of the new infrastructure.
• The project will involve an estimated investment of €18.7 million and will strengthen the electricity supply to meet growing energy demand.
• The new substation will have an installed capacity of 90 megawatts and will support, among other applications, Onshore Power Supply (OPS) systems for vessels.

The Port Authority of València has launched the tender process for the construction of a new electrical substation at the Port of València, an infrastructure project that will enable Valenciaport to double the port’s electricity supply capacity. This step follows authorisation by the Spanish Council of Ministers.

The project is expected to take 20 months to complete and will involve an estimated investment of €18.7 million. It will strengthen the electricity supply to meet the anticipated increase in energy demand over the coming years, driven both by the activities of terminals, companies and concession holders, and by the port’s electrification process. The investment is supported by the European Commission through the Connecting Europe Facility (CEF).

ST2 will have a shared available capacity with ST1, ranging from a maximum of 90 megawatts (MW) to a minimum of 40 megawatts (MW), depending on whether it is supplied through one of the two ST-Aqua lines or one of the two ST-Punta lines, respectively. Its commissioning will enable the facility to meet the growing energy demand of cargo terminals, logistics infrastructure and new Onshore Power Supply (OPS) systems for vessels.

This will enable the interconnection of the Port Authority of Valencia (APV) power supply network in the northern area of the port with the high-voltage distribution network. The existence of two independently operated substations connected through separate incoming connections will enable a high-availability power supply configuration and strengthen the energy resilience of the port facility.

In this way, in the event of network incidents, maintenance works or exceptional periods of high demand, the port’s internal grid will be able to draw power from the second substation without the need to interrupt terminal operations. This capability is particularly important for ensuring the continuity of critical operations, such as crane operations and the power supply to refrigerated containers (reefers).

The new facility has been designed with sustainability and landscape integration criteria and will incorporate GIS technology, which allows high-voltage equipment to be housed within a sealed enclosure, reducing the risk of leaks of polluting fluids into the soil or sea.

Infrastructure for port electrification

The second substation will not only strengthen the quality and continuity of the Port of Valencia’s internal power grid, but will also provide the capacity needed to advance the electrification of port operations and the deployment of new energy infrastructure.

These include Onshore Power Supply (OPS) systems, which allow berthed vessels to connect to the shore-side electricity grid and switch off their auxiliary engines while in port. This helps reduce emissions associated with these engines, as well as the noise impact of port activities on the surrounding area.