UK’s first green shipping corridor is in the making

September 18, 2025, by Naida Hakirevic Prevljak

The UK-based clean energy enabler NatPower Marine and compatriot port operator Peel Ports Group are set to commence installation of shore power at Heysham in September 2025.

The first berth-side shore power plug-in is expected to be operational in 2026, scaling to four plugs across all berths.

This will enable all Heysham routes within the Irish Sea to operate with zero emissions while at berth and at sea, supporting full electric propulsion of the ferry services, as the first part of the full electrification of the Irish Sea.

View on Offshore-energy.

The investment reportedly supports the UK Government’s industrial and economic growth objectives through more sustainable passenger and freight routes.

Once all four berths at Heysham are electrified, the infrastructure will enable vessels in the Irish sea routes to reduce CO₂ emissions by more than 10,000 tonnes per year, alongside significant reductions in NOₓ and SOₓ.

The investment is expected to total around £10 million, with NatPower Marine delivering the infrastructure and Peel Ports Group providing site and operational support.

The Heysham initiative forms part of a wider £100 million partnership between NatPower Marine and Peel Ports Group to roll out e-ship charging infrastructure in Great Britain and Ireland islands. This work will accelerate Peel Ports Group’s ambition for Heysham to become the UK’s first net-zero port, building on its existing success in reducing landside emissions by up to 90% and significantly improving air quality in the surrounding areas.

View on Offshore-energy.

When fully rolled out across all Peel Ports Group locations, shore power could reduce CO₂ emissions by up to 166,800 tonnes every year, alongside 2,180 tonnes of NOₓ, 1,060 tonnes of SO₂, and 470 tonnes of methane. This demonstrates the scale of impact that port electrification can deliver in improving air quality and driving decarbonization across the UK’s busiest shipping routes.

“Heysham is where the UK’s first green shipping corridor becomes real. One plug will soon become four, serving every Heysham route to Ireland and giving operators the confidence to move quickly on vessel electrification. We are building the backbone of a clean shipping network so ferry and freight lines can invest in the next generation of zero-emission ships,” Martin Olverson, Development Director Marine of NatPower Marine, commented.

“Shipping is already the greenest form of transport but there’s still a huge role for ports to play in decarbonising the supply chain. We can only do that with collaboration, innovation and long-term commitment from everyone involved, which this project embodies. However, this goes far beyond environmental goals. Ports are the lifeblood of UK plc and so many of our national economic and social ambitions rely on a thriving maritime sector,” Lewis McIntyre, Managing Director, Peel Ports Group, said.

As shipping lines increasingly look to electrify both at-port operations and at-sea propulsion in response to tightening regulations, demand for clean energy is set to skyrocket. To decarbonize the industry, 4 petawatt-hours (PWh) of clean energy per year is needed – equal to the annual electricity consumption of the USA.

NatPower Marine is addressing this challenge head-on by deploying the urgently needed infrastructure for e-ship charging, specifically for propulsion and cold ironing, starting in the UK.

Earlier this year, the company announced plans to invest in a global charging network covering 120 port locations by 2030. To ensure the energy used at these ports is clean, NatPower is also developing over 12.5 GW of clean energy GigaParks projects in the UK, with 100 GWh of battery storage capacity, crucial for balancing intermittent demand, such as electric ship requirements for propulsion and cold ironing. These GigaParks will provide clean electricity to NatPower Marine’s UK port network via direct power purchasing agreements or private wires.