The road to carbon neutral port operations

Especially not in an environment where huge quantities of powering equipment, machines, lighting, heating and vehicles, consume energy 24/7, 365 days of the year, across the operator’s vast and hungry infrastructure.

“There is no denying that we operate within a sector typically reliant on heavy industry but that is why we place such importance on researching, developing, and implementing ways in which we can keep our environmental impact to an absolute minimum,” says Frans Calje, chief executive officer of PD Ports.

“We recognise our responsibility to ourselves, our communities and our customers to reduce environmental impact, which is why we have set such ambitious decarbonisation targets – targets that we are well on track to exceed.”

Positive legacy

Mr Calje points out that operator has the bigger picture in mind  – it’s committed to leaving a positive legacy for the next generation.

Decarbonisation is a prominent and important part of the agenda to become the UK’s most sustainable port.

The over-arching sustainability strategy for the groups promotes a focus on making the switch from fossil fuels, reducing energy consumption and establishing generative power including solar panels and wind turbines.

Mr Calje says that the decision was made to focus initial strategy at landside operations at Teesport rather than trying to do each of PD Ports’ 12 sites all at once.

“By starting at one location we can collaborate, implement and test new technology that we can roll out to other sites – we can see what works and what doesn’t, on a smaller scale before making the further investment.”

In 2019, PD Ports Tees-based landside operations produced circa 11,000 tonnes of carbon across scope 1 and 2. In 2023, it reported 3,700 tonnes under the two scopes – the same as levels recorded in 2000, around a three times reduction so things are heading in the right direction.

”We still have work to do to continue our downward trajectory to our carbon neutral target but we are positive we will achieve the challenge set,” says Mr Calje.

Emissions mapping

The operator spent a lot of time assessing and analysing the 12 sites that make up PD Ports Group operations across the UK to identify a starting position at each, map their carbon footprint and to look at the technology already in place at each site.

It has worked in collaboration with a number of different organisations, including universities and government organisations, to implement new solutions and technology.

Plus, it’s invested a lot of capital in into existing infrastructure to support technology that’s already out there, including electrification of site equipment, solar panels, infra-red heating, renewable fuels and the roll out of electric vehicles and charging facilities.

Although the focus is currently on Teesport, some other sites have already started looking at their own operations and made steps to get ahead by seeing what has worked at Teesport, such as installing solar panels and insulation, so that’s a big step towards what the group is trying to achieve long term.

One interesting addition to day to day operations is the installation of infra-red heating, which is powered by electricity.

Infra-red is a sustainable method of providing heat for commercial spaces as the heat source fixes on to objects or people and warms them directly, rather than trying to warm the air around them, which is futile and a waste of energy in warehouses or big open facilities.

Since 2020 all of the operator’s electricity has come from renewable sources – turbines and solar panels. Adding solar panels means taking pressure off the grid and becoming more self-sufficient.

Fuel transition

While PD Ports 2027 carbon neutral target has focused on land-based Tees operations, it has adopted a group wide procurement policy that requires all future assets to be capable of running on more sustainable fuels.

The Emerald Duchess, a new state of the art dredging vessel which will maintain the ports of Tees and Hartlepool, is an excellent example of this policy.

It will replace a 50-year-old dredger previously in operation and enable the operator to carry out our dredging obligations as the Statutory Harbour Authority in the most sustainable way possible.

The new vessel has been ‘future-proofed’ with a number of bespoke design features that will eventually allow carbon neutral operations.

Fitted with an innovative intelligent power management system, the Emerald Duchess can swap between power from a battery pack equivalent to 10 Tesla cars and fuel made from HVO.

It is also ready for future innovation. Power units can be adapted to use green methanol or ethanol, or can be swapped out for modern fuel cells as the technology matures, using green hydrogen fuel, which is carbon neutral.

Extensive modelling, using computational fluid dynamics, has taken place to create a hull that is as refined as possible while moving through the water to minimise fuel consumption.

On the quay

In 2023, an GB £8.6m investment was made in two Liebherr mobile harbour cranes.

Standing at 83m tall with the boom fully raised, the cranes are electric-hydraulic powered and offer a more environmentally conscious and efficient solution for loading and discharging a range of bulk commodities.

The cranes have also increased handling capacities from 100 to 140 tonnes.

Through procurement the operator has also secured three fully-electric rubber tyre gantry (RTG) cranes, used to load and unload containers from trucks in the yard, which have been further supported by efforts underway to convert remaining RTG cranes from diesel to electric.

In 2022, GB£2m was invested to convert four existing RTG cranes to electric power, which now means that 70% of the fleet is electric, saving 700 tonnes of CO2 emissions each year compared to diesel.

Work is also underway to look at electric or battery operation of other port equipment where possible, such as forklifts, loading shovels and terminal tractors.

Where electric powered operations is not possible the operator has looked at alternative fuel sources. Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) has been introduced as an alternative to regular diesel. The use of HVO results in a 90% reduction in permanent CO2 emitted to the atmosphere when compared to regular diesel.

By July 2023, 70% of compatible assets across Tees and Hartlepool successfully have been converted to HVO, inlcuding container handlers, terminal tractors, loading shovels and forklifts. Work is underway to convert the remainder of the port operations fleet to HVO as far as possible.

Next steps

The drive is of course to achieve carbon neutrality at land-based Teesport operations by 2027, then when the time is right, the strategy will be rolled out across the 11 further sites.

The carbon footprint for each site will be mapped to give a working starting point and a forecast produced for each site. Technology will be at the forefront of tackling each site, taking into account that each has different needs and a reliance on differing fuel sources, for example warehousing, transport and river-based conservancy operations.

”In our role as an enabler and catalyst for inward investment and economic growth in the Tees Valley, we continue to work with our customers, key partners and stakeholders to position the River Tees at the forefront of the energy transition in the UK,” says Mr Calje.

For example, PD Ports is working with EDF Hynamics, on their plans to develop the Tees Green Hydrogen project, an initiative that will use green electricity from the Tees Bay Wind Farm to generate green hydrogen.

PD Ports will be one of the first off takers of the green energy, which will be used to power mobile port operations.

The work will combine to contribute towards a net zero future for PD Ports and the wholeTees Valley.

“As a business, we are committed to driving positive change and building a more sustainable future; the level of investment we have made in our green strategy signifies that while also ensuring we can uphold the highest operating standards,” adds Mr Calje.

“Decarbonisation is such a prominent and important part of our agenda as we continue our journey towards becoming a smarter port and further elevating ourselves as the UK’s premier seaport and logistics operator.”