Associated British Ports (ABP) has announced plans to install a second Shore Power connection at the Port of Southampton, continuing its support for sustainable cruising.

Following the announcement that Shore Power is one of the leading environmental features incorporated into the design of the port’s new Horizon cruise terminal, ABP has confirmed in a press release that the Mayflower terminal is also set to be equipped with the same ‘plug in’ technology.

According to the press release, this announcement is the next step in an ongoing partnership with Carnival UK to enable sustainable cruising from the Port of Southampton and follows a £12 million investment at the port’s Ocean Terminal in readiness for the LNG-powered P&O Cruises’ Iona.

“We are incredibly proud to be making another significant step as we further develop our sustainable credentials for cruise with Carnival UK here in Southampton,” said Regional Director at the Port of Southampton Alastair Welch. “This is good news for the port, for air quality and for the future of cruise.”

This investment has received support from HM Government’s Local Growth Deal that provides funds to Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) for projects that benefit the local area and economy. Through this the Solent LEP has part-funded the project that means that an alternative fuel can potentially be offered or supported at each of the dedicated cruise terminals in the port.

“We are delighted to see the advance in shore power technology and the fitting of this into Mayflower Cruise Terminal. A number of our P&O Cruises and Cunard ships are already shore-power enabled and we have plans to install this capability across our fleet. We very much look forward to our return to service this summer and being able to plug into this option while our ships are in port,” Carnival UK President Simon Palethorpe said.

“We’re extremely proud to support Associated British Ports’ programme of enabling shore power for cruise ships, as part of our vision to be the global leader in maritime and climate change adaptation. Southampton’s shore power initiative is a huge opportunity to pioneer the green credentials of our local economy and the wider advances in maritime technology that are so important to Southampton and the wider Solent region,” said the Chief Executive of the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership Anne-Marie Mountifield.

By introducing the option for cruise ships, with onboard capability, to plug in while alongside, the port could start seeing CO2 emission savings of up to 863 kg in CO2 and 10.5 kg of Nitrogen Oxide (NOx) per vessel call each year. The second connection will be commissioned and installed during 2021.