Hamburg Port Pioneers Onshore Power Supply for Cruise Ships

Hamburg Port Authority (HPA) has commissioned Siemens  as a general contractor to supply a turnkey onshore power supply system to cut  the combustion of marine fuel to supply the required electricity to all onboard systems when cruise ships are in port, which is a major contributor to local air pollution in harbours.

The system, to be built and installed by 2015, will be able to supply electricity to cruise ships of all common sizes, regardless of the design of the ship’s electrical system, while they are in port.

This will be the first European onshore power supply system of this type with a capacity of 12 megavolt amperes (MVA), and it will work with a patented, mobile robot arm designed specifically for the tidal range.

Frequency converters with control software from Siemens adjust the frequency of the harbour’s local distribution grid to match the ship’s electrical system.

According to Siemens, the onshore power supply system from Siemens has a cable management system developed especially for cruise ships that provides a fast, easy, and flexible connection between the shore and the ship.

A robot arm is used to carry the connectors for the power cable and the communications link into the ship through the outer hatch, as if on a tray. The system is self-propelled and can be automatically operated from the ship as needed, so that no additional specialists are needed on shore.

The cable management system is stored in a flood-protected garage when not in operation, ensuring that visitors have public access to the dock. Siemens says that telescoping cranes, trucks and buses can drive over the dock operating area with no restrictions during the lay days.