Americas News
Port of San Diego Shore Power Project Approved
The Port of San Diego has said the Board of Port Commissioners approved a non-appealable coastal development permit to bring shore power to its Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal (TAMT).
The next step for the project will take place in April this year, when the Board will select a contractor for the work.
Construction is expected to begin soon after that, and be completed by the end of the year in compliance with the California Air Resources Board (CARB) Shore Side Power Rule, which requires shore power infrastructure to be in place by the start of 2014.
Earlier in the month, the Port issued a document detailing the project and its potential environmental impact, and has previously said that approximately 14 percent of the Port District's nitrogen oxide and 18 percent of Diesel Particulate Matter emissions come from ships at berth at TAMT.
The Port said that the use of shore power, where the vessels "plug in" instead of running their diesel engines while at berth, would achieve "a substantial reduction of overall emissions."
The terminal's main tenant, Dole Fresh Fruit Company (Dole), recently signed a new long-term lease, under which the port will pay for the power infrastructure and Dole will make vessel-side improvements.
The Port of San Diego is already equipped to provide shore power to cruise ships that berth at both its B Street Pier Cruise Ship Terminal and Broadway Pier.
The Port also recently announced that Pacific Tugboat Service, a member of the Port of San Diego's Green Business Network, successfully converted its fleet of 20 vessels to run on shore power.
Elsewhere on the West Coast, the Port of Oakland in December said it reached "another milestone" in its shore power program with German shipper Hapag-Lloyd.
