Op-ed: Zeroing in on port pollution

In today’s world and maritime industry, port-side residents, port workers, seafarers, passengers, and regulators alike are justified in asking why ships are still billowing black smoke in ports and what the viable solutions are, says Victor Åkerlund, Chief Analytics and Sustainability Officer at PowerCell Group.

Local emissions of nitrogen oxide (NOx), sulphur oxide (SOx) and particulate matter (PM) such as black carbon remain a challenge, alongside greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions like carbon dioxide (CO2), in the marine industry worldwide. This article will look at the problem and why it matters, the options to solve it, and share information on maritime technologies such as fuel cells.

According to the World Health Organization, local pollution of NOx, SOx and PM significantly impact human health. They can exacerbate existing conditions like asthma, cause respiratory problems with long-term exposure linked to lung cancer, and potentially increase the risk of heart disease and stroke.

A 2023 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Ports Initiative study estimated that 40 million people in the United States alone live near ports. Meanwhile, a 2023 World Bank report found that over 250 million people globally are directly exposed to emissions from major ports due to continued urban expansion near shipping hubs.

The Port of Southampton in the United Kingdom has seen a dramatic rise in emissions from cruise ships especially, according to a study from environmental campaign group Transport & Environment. Cruise ships have high-power demands for their hotel operations when in ports, so were particularly highlighted in the research.

The elimination of local pollution in ports is firmly on the UK’s new Maritime Decarbonisation Strategy. The strategy calls for a “shore power revolution” and refers to the Seachange Shore Power Project in Portsmouth International Port which aims to install a shore power system at three busy berths for cruise and ferry vessels.

Local pollution was historically the primary target for the International Maritime Organization (IMO) and it has enforced limits on NOx, SOx and PM emissions. While MEPC 83 made minor amendments to engine certification in the NOx technical code, understandably, the IMO’s attention has now shifted more to GHG emissions such as CO2 and methane. However, incentives to further eliminate local emissions are still vital.

With local emissions in mind, starting in 2030, the European Commission’s FuelEU Maritime regulations make container and passenger ships greater than or equal to 5,000 gross tonnes (GT) use shore power supplies for all electricity needs while moored in major EU ports. FuelEU Maritime also accepts alternatives to shore power connections to meet the emissions requirements while docked, including hydrogen and ammonia fuel cells, and biofuels and e-fuels, depending on their well-to-wake emissions reductions.

The local emissions and shore power problem is clearly recognised, and encouragingly there are several solutions available. While ship and port operators may think plugging into shore power infrastructure fed by the national energy grid would be the best solution, this is actually not the case. Firstly, plugging into grid shore power is relatively expensive. While it is variable, the starting fee for plugging into shore power can be around €5,000.

Secondly, grid power connections in ports are limited, and when multiple ships are trying to connect to shore power at the same time it can easily require more power than the grid can offer today. Expanding the capacity and subscriptions for grid power can take a long time, be costly, and require coordination from various competing stakeholders with a collective dis-responsibility to tackle the issue. Grid power is also often derived from fossil fuels, so emissions are just moved to power plants rather than being eliminated.

So, what are the alternatives to grid shore power connections for ship and port operators? Adopting zero-emission or net-zero power generation technologies onboard or onshore, such as fuel cells using hydrogen or methanol, can help. Fuel cells can replace essentially all uses of diesel generator sets and can be deployed in several ways to tackle local emissions in ports.

Onboard smaller vessels such as ferries or port barges, fuel cells can provide enough energy to power primary propulsion systems. Onboard larger vessels, such as cruise ships, fuel cells can power the auxiliary engines and replace the diesel gensets used for manoeuvring in ports and to electrify hotel-side operations.

There are also examples of land-based containerised fuel cell generators in ports. Trials of these systems were initially focused on powering shoreside construction sites, however a recent trial conducted in the Port of Gothenburg turned this power towards sustainable shore power connections.

Fuel cells come in different shapes and sizes. Proton-exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells are smaller, more efficient and offer a higher power density to alternatives. These fuel cells can use hydrogen, but with reformer technology, they can also use ammonia or methanol to produce energy.

When used with fuel cells, methanol can eliminate all local emissions and offer net-zero GHG emissions. This may sound like science fiction, but there are already commercial marine orders for PEM fuel cells featuring integrated methanol reformer technology, such as PowerCell Group’s M2Power 250.

Methanol offers a practical pathway for integrating hydrogen electric technologies without relying on pure hydrogen infrastructure. Plus, methanol can be used approximately 30% more efficiently in fuel cells than in internal combustion engines.

With green methanol, and all other green fuels, set to be more expensive and less energy-dense than their fossil-based counterparts, there is also an operational expenditure (OPEX) benefit to using fuel cells – which, to reiterate, convert methanol to energy a minimum of 30% more efficiently than burning it in internal combustion engines.

Local emissions pollution remains one of the most immediate and visible challenges facing the maritime sector today, directly impacting the health of millions, especially around ports. While regulations like FuelEU Maritime are driving change, infrastructure limitations of traditional shore power underline the need for alternative solutions. Fuel cells are one option and can be used in several ways to address this challenge. We no longer live in a world where ships need to billow black smoke.

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