Italian ports pushed to decarbonise

Enel Group’s Enel X and shipbuilder Fincantieri have signed a letter of intent to work together on building and running next-generation port infrastructure with a low environmental impact (shore power/cold ironing) and developing electricity-powered solution for ground logistics services.

“Enel and Fincantieri are joining forces to promote the decarbonization of powering docked ships,” said Eliano Russo, Head of e-Industries at Enel X. “Ninety per cent of Europe’s ports are located in metropolitan areas, and public opinion in many cities has decried the pollution, noise and vibrations caused by the engines of docked ships. Development of cold ironing infrastructure will prevent this, as docked ships will have an electrical connection onshore. Today, digitalization, sustainability and innovation allow us to offer smart, efficient technologies that will reboot Europe’s port and maritime sectors.”

Cold ironing to be rolled out in Europe

In its first stage dedicated to projects with a national scope, the agreement specifically pertains to: cold ironing, which comprises providing a shoreside power source to docked ships; management and optimisation of energy exchanges in new infrastructure; and electricity storage and production systems that use renewable sources and fuel cells. The partnership will also ensure that initiatives rolled out in Italy can be replicated in other countries, such as Spain, Portugal and Greece.

The collaboration between Enel X and Fincantieri is expected to see a growing number of ports and docks in Italy, and subsequently in other European countries, offer cold ironing, leading to the creation of a far-reaching European cold ironing network.