As part of its commitment to achieving net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, MSC Cruises is investing in new technologies to help decarbonize. A key part of this commitment is minimizing the impact of cruise ships on port communities and their surroundings while docked. In this regard, connections to the local electricity grid are crucial, as they allow ships to shut down their engines once docked and use the local power grid to run their onboard systems. Following significant investments in the technological capabilities of its fleet, MSC Cruises is today announcing concrete steps to adopt and accelerate the use of local electricity connections.
From the end of May and throughout the 2022 summer season, two ships in the MSC Cruises fleet will use local electrical connections for the first time: MSC Virtuosa in the UK, at the new Horizon cruise terminal in the Port of Southampton, and MSC Poesia in Rostock-Warnemünde, Germany. In both cases, close collaboration with local authorities has made the provision and use of these local electrical connections possible. MSC Cruises thanks the port authorities for their support in finalizing the necessary technical installations so that this system can begin operating in just a few weeks.
Linden Coppell, MSC Cruises' Director of Sustainability, commented: “We are eagerly anticipating the launch of the local power connection in Southampton and Warnemünde this summer season and congratulate the port authorities on their forward-thinking approach and commitment to innovation. We need more ports in Europe to introduce the power connection point, joining our efforts to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 and reduce local air emissions as much as possible.
On April 5, 2022, Cruise Baltic and MSC Cruises signed amemorandum of understandingto collaborate on promoting the use of local electricity grids in the Baltic Sea region. By signing the agreement, Cruise Baltic committed to upgrading the local electricity grid infrastructure at its ports, aiming to increase the number of ports in the Baltic Sea where this technology is available. MSC Cruises, in turn, committed to ensuring that cruise ships calling at ports in the region utilize local electricity grid connections whenever possible, as soon as possible and no later than January 1, 2024.
By the end of 2022, 11 of MSC Cruises' 21 ships will be equipped to connect to the local power grid. Currently, existing ships are being retrofitted, or will be retrofitted in the future, as their itineraries take them to ports with shore power available.
Furthermore, wherever MSC Cruises is involved in the construction and financing of new terminals, the company will ensure that the designs take into account these requirements for connection to the local power grid, such as the trenches needed for power cables. Good examples of this are the new terminals that MSC Cruises is building in Miami and Barcelona.
MSC Group's Cruise division has initiated several partnerships with shipyards, energy providers, infrastructure companies, technology developers, and academic institutions. These partnerships will enable further research into fuel cells, hydrogen-powered vessels, and other emerging technologies that offer the potential to enable net-zero emissions ships. The company's ambition is to increasingly study and test these potential solutions through newbuild and retrofit programs to accelerate their development and deployment across its fleet.
