( European Regulation (EU) 2023/1804 known as AFIR) laid the foundation for creating the physical infrastructure for refueling and refueling alternative fuels on land for vehicles and transport, while Regulation (EU) 2023/1805 (known as FuelEU Maritime) requires ships to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by using clean fuels on board.
Taken together, these regulations set the guidelines and deadlines for an energy transition in all modes of transport, and with regard to cruise ships and the ports that receive them, they have set a goal that the major Spanish ports included in the TEN-T core network will have the OPS (On-Shore Power Supply) infrastructure ready, to connect cruise ships to electricity supplied from land, before January 1, 2030.
Connecting ships to the electrical grid while docked in port allows auxiliary engines to be switched off, reducing polluting emissions and noise.
The challenge is enormous, as each cruise ship can have a demand of between 2 and 20 MW, depending on its size, and Spain receives dozens of cruise ships every day, therefore, the national electricity grid must be sized for this.
Puertos del Estado has coordinated the integration of power needs into the national electricity grid, currently underway, in close collaboration with the Directorates General for Energy Policy and Mines, Red Eléctrica and the distribution companies, working to ensure that the deployment of OPS is technically and economically viable.
Furthermore, these power levels require significant energy infrastructure in each of the ports: high voltage lines, electrical substation, frequency converter, and the cable connection and management system on the dock.
These are costly projects that in many cases face the added difficulty that cruise ship docks are integrated into or very close to urban areas, which makes laying new medium or high voltage power lines more difficult and expensive.
Thus, the Ministry of Transport and Sustainable Mobility estimates that 950 million euros will be invested in the electrification of Spanish port docks by 2030.
In 2024, the port system as a whole had an installed electrical capacity of 200 MW and recorded an annual consumption of 1 TWh. To meet the target set by the AFIR in 2030, it is estimated that an additional capacity of more than 1 GW will be needed to meet a total projected consumption of more than 2 TWh.
Currently , 60% of cruise ships already have the OPS equipment to connect to shore and turn off their engines when in port, which is what this whole transformation is about, but the aforementioned technical difficulties and long bidding periods are lengthening the deadlines.
In general terms, we can say that the progress made in this area over the past year is satisfactory. Firstly, because significant progress has been made in regulatory matters, a key factor for the success of these projects. The Sustainable Mobility Law, passed this year, underscores the importance of ports in decarbonization and prioritizes addressing the energy needs of port facilities in order to develop projects such as the Port of Ports (OPS) initiative and promote alternative fuels.
The Spanish government has also implemented the Regulation on the Supply, Marketing, and Aggregation of Electricity, which introduces, among other things, a system allowing for temporary modifications to contracted power. This will enable power contracts to be adapted to the consumption patterns of activities that, like the OPS (Operational Service Provider), exhibit significant seasonal and daily variability.
Secondly, European investment (Next Generation EU, ERDF, and CEF funds) has been secured to drive these projects forward. These projects include the construction of substations and distribution networks, as well as the development of the facilities for the Port of the South (OPS), which also require private investment. All these efforts clearly demonstrate the importance of public-private partnerships, the foundation of our port system of general interest, but especially crucial for decarbonization.
Thirdly, there have been significant milestones such as the first electrical connection for cruise ships, in the port of Cádiz. In 2024, the Port of Barcelona pioneered the installation of an OPS connection at a container terminal in a Mediterranean port. It also has connections at the passenger and roll-on/roll-off cargo terminal in Sant Bertrán. The Balearic and Canary Islands have OPS connections for ferries. And to these installations must be added those already under construction or in the planning stage at most of the ports in the state system.
Cadiz, the first in Spain, is now operational
The port of Cadiz is, to this day, the only Spanish port with an OPS system for cruise ships already inaugurated and in operation, and has become the benchmark model that other ports have come to visit.
Inaugurated on March 18, 2026 at the Alfonso XIII cruise dock, it has involved an investment of 1.5 million euros by the port and 6.75 million euros by Endesa, of which 2.7 million euros are financed by the NextGeneration Funds of the European Union.
It is expected to meet an estimated demand of 8.62 GWh in its first year, which will mean a reduction of about 5,000 tons of CO2 per year, the equivalent of 2,800 cars driving for a year.
Despite being the fastest, the Cadiz project was not without its problems and delays, but by proposing from the beginning a modular installation of 16 MVA for a single cruise ship at a time on a single dock (Alfonso XIII), expandable to 24 MVA later, the project was able to develop more quickly than others with much greater complexity, such as the case of Barcelona.
Barcelona, a complex project that is making steady progress
Barcelona already has the OPS operational in container terminals and in the Sant Bertrán passenger/ro-ro terminal, but not yet for cruise ships.
Electrifying the Muelle Adosado, where cruise activity is concentrated, has its own challenge, as it is an "island" connected to the rest of the port by the Porta d'Europa Bridge, which is a drawbridge.
Thus, in 2023, the construction of seven underground conduits was awarded, connecting the Energy Dock with the Attached Dock, crossing the southern navigation channel over a 700-meter stretch at a depth of up to 32 meters. The contract was awarded on January 31, 2024, with a 28-month execution period, meaning completion should have occurred at the beginning of this summer.
Coinciding with the completion of these tunnels, the contract for the construction of the double-line medium-voltage (25 kV) electrical network converging at this submarine connection to power the cruise ship and ferry operating systems at the Adosado Wharf was awarded in June 2026. With a construction period of 23.5 months, it is expected to be completed by mid-2028.
The most modern terminals there, Catalonia Cruise Terminal G of the Royal Caribbean Group, and Terminal H of the MSC Group, are especially eagerly awaiting this moment, as they have their own projects to deploy the final infrastructure of cabling and connections to the ship.
A Coruña, following in Cádiz's footsteps to become the second port with OPS
A Coruña awarded the project to install an OPS system at the end of 2025, for 10 million euros, both at the Transatlantic Dock and at the Calvo Sotelo Dock, which will be operational by the end of 2027.
The works will include the connection to the distribution network, a transformation and frequency conversion center, connection towers on both docks, an underground medium voltage network, two electric cable management vehicles that allow simultaneous supply on both docks and other facilities, equipment and systems.
If the deadlines are met, A Coruña will become the second Spanish port to offer this service after Cádiz.
Bilbao, also at the end of 2027
Bilbao has also done its homework, and its BilbOPS project, which covers the electrification of all the docks, includes in its final phase the Getxo 1 and Getxo 3 cruise ship docks with a commissioning date at the end of 2027. The project contemplates three connection points, with the capacity to serve two ships at the same time using mobile systems with an operational range of up to 100 meters.
Cartagena, in the race for 2027
The Port Authority awarded Regenera OPS the installation and operation of an OPS system for cruise ships at the Juan Sebastián Elcano dock in March 2026, with a total investment of around 30 million euros, divided into 15 million in public investment and 15.19 million in private investment.
It will have approximately 20 MVA of installed power, with capacity for two vessels simultaneously. It includes a 66 kV service line, a 66/20 kV transformer substation, and a 20 kV underground line to the dock.
According to published reports, the first cruise ships could connect from the second half of 2027.
Malaga, substation in operation
In May 2026, the Port of Malaga awarded OHLA the contract to build a 66/20 kV distribution substation, with an initial capacity of 25 MW at 66 kV and a planned expansion to 70 MW. The construction period is 25 months, so it is expected to become operational by mid-2028.
The chosen location, in the area of the mouth of the Guadalmedina river, means that the cabling will later have to be run to the Levante Dock, where large cruise ships dock; and to Dock 2, the closest to the city, where luxury cruise ships or megayachts dock.
Tarragona, six projects to reach the goal
The Port of Tarragona has budgeted €22 million for the necessary works to implement a cruise ship safety system. The system has been divided into six sub-projects, two of which are already underway and three in the bidding phase. One of these requires 640 meters of underwater netting. No definitive start date has been given, but it is expected to be operational before the 2030 deadline.
The other ports are making progress on their projects
The Vigo Port Authority awarded Ghenova the contract to design the Operational Safety and Planning (OSP) systems for the cruise ship and container docks. Alicante, Valencia, and the Balearic Islands are also progressing through the study and design phases.
The Canary Islands, the most complex case
In the case of the Canary Islands, whose ports received a total of 1,641 calls in 2025, the supply of electricity to cruise ships faces a major challenge.
The Canary Islands have an electricity grid sized for their needs and with significant problems of their own to solve: power deficit, little interconnection, age of generating units, little decarbonization, etc.
Therefore, while electrifying the Canary Islands' cruise ship docks is not impossible, the order of priorities differs from that on the Spanish mainland: first, the islands' own electrical grid must be reinforced and decarbonized, and only then will the Operational Protection Scheme (OPS) for large vessels like cruise ships contribute to emissions reductions. This is why the archipelago is starting with ferries, tugboats, and fishing vessels—which have much lower electrical loads—before moving on to cruise ships.
