Port of Kiel opens new shore power facilities

The Port of Kiel has opened two shore power facilities at the Ostuferhafen, consisting of a 50/60 Hz shore power facility for cruise ships and ferries as well as a 50 Hz shore power facility for ferries.

The expansion of the shore power infrastructure is one of the priority projects of the Kiel seaport to reduce Co₂ emissions as well as air/pollutant emissions of the ships during their berthing times.

Like the existing shore power facilities at Norwegenkai and Schweden-/Ostseekai, the new facilities at Ostuferhafen were built by SIEMENS AG.

The 17-million-euro construction project at Ostuferhafen includes two shore power facilities with capacities for the parallel supply of up to three seagoing vessels.

The first of the two shore power plants is designed to supply one ferry and one cruise ship and connects four berths at Ostuferhafen to shore power. It has a capacity of 16 MVA and can supply cruise ships and ferries with a frequency of 50 or 60 Hz and a voltage of 6.6 kV or 11 kV.

The second shore power system with a 50 Hz grid frequency is exclusively designed for RoRo ships and supplies two berths with a voltage of 6.6 kV or 11 kV up to a maximum power of 5 MVA. The construction project was realised with financial support from the federal government.

Now, the financing for the new facilities was funded in equal parts by the Federal Government and the State of Schleswig-Holstein. 

The necessary commissioning of the plant for cruise ships has already begun. In parallel, integration tests with the cruise ship MSC Euribia also continued on Saturday in preparation for regular supply.

“The construction of the two new shore power plants at the seaport shows: Our ports are moving forward. With each planned, funded and built plant, the seaport of Kiel is implementing its Blue Port strategy and moving further towards climate neutrality. With the almost 5.5 million euros each, the state and federal government are also investing in sensible solutions that make maritime transport more environmentally friendly and in a location factor in competition with other ports,” said Minister-President Daniel Günther.

Mayor Ulf Kämpfer was pleased that the port is continuing its stringent shore power strategy with the construction of the facilities at Ostuferhafen: “Since 2019, the seaport of Kiel has been continuously investing in the expansion of its shore power infrastructure. We now have one of the largest facilities in Europe. Kiel also wants to be a pioneer in sustainable maritime tourism and mobility in the future.“

Over the next few years, Kiel will be the home port for MSC Cruises’ newest flagship, MSC Euribia. The energy-efficient cruise ship will be the first vessel to take shore power at the Ostufer-hafen.