Americas News
Testing of Shore Power Alternative Likely to Begin This Fall
Formal testing of an at-berth emissions reduction system intended to be an alternative to shore power is likely to begin this fall, the Port of Long Beach (PoLB) told Ship & Bunker today.
The project, which was given the go ahead in February following the approval of the project's budget in July 2013, will assess a mobile, barge-mounted system by Advanced Cleanup Technologies, Inc. (ACTI) known as Advanced Maritime Emissions Control System (AMECS) that diverts a ship's smokestack emissions into a filter-and-treatment device.
"They've spent the summer getting ready for the formal testing, so it will be this fall before they start the real testing on a variety of ships," a spokesperson for the port said.
Any approval of the system by the state would be some months away, they added.
Effective January 1, 2014 a California regulation requires a portion of vessel calls in the state by container, refrigerated cargo, and cruise ships to use shore power while at berth, although the wording of the regulation also allows for an equivalent method of compliance.
PoLB say the regulation only applies to about a third of its vessel calls, and it ultimately wants to reduce port emissions entirely.
Whether the AMECS system would qualify as an equivalent method of compliance would have to be determined by the state following the successful completion of the trial, but in theory it could not only provide an alternative to shore power, but also help reduce at-berth emissions beyond the scope of the current regulation.
"We want to become a zero-emissions port, so I look forward with particular interest to see how the AMECS technology performs," Harbor Commission President Doug Drummond said earlier this year.
Prior to the introduction of the new regulation, California Air Resources Board (CARB) said vessels that have tried to comply with new shore power rules will not be penalised if they are unable to do so because of problems outside of their control.
