Earlier this year, the MSC Group announced its next phase of shore power planning for both MSC Cruises and Explora Journeys.

To demonstrate the company’s commitment to, and continued progress toward, decarbonization, and the reduction of emissions from its fleet of ships while berthed in ports, 15 new ports will be added between 2024 and 2026 where its vessels can plug in to shoreside electricity grids.

At least five Italian ports are included in the new plan for 2024-26; Barcelona and Valencia in Spain; Stavanger and Norfjordied in Norway; Miami in the United States; Copenhagen in Denmark; Marseille in France; Rotterdam in the Netherlands; Valletta in Malta, and Stockholm in Sweden.

As soon as shore power facilities become available at other ports where MSC Cruises and Explora Journeys operate, both ships will fully utilize them.

As of February 2023, MSC Cruises has successfully used shore power at the ports of Southampton, UK, and Kristiansand, Norway, and later this summer the company will test it in the Norwegian port of Haugesund. MSC Cruises’ ships will also undergo trials in Bergen and Alesund in Norway, as well as Warnemunde in Germany, this year.

Shore power will also be used by MSC Cruises in the German ports of Hamburg in the winter and Kiel in the summer of 2024.

For shore power in the Baltic Sea area, MSC Cruises signed a memorandum of understanding with Cruise Baltic last year. It is committed to increasing the number of shore power facilities in 32 ports and destinations in its region, Cruise Baltic said.

Since 2017, MSC Cruises has installed shore power capabilities on all new ships as a standard feature and has retrofitted other vessels with the technology, making up 67 percent of the company’s total capacity. Shore power will become available at more ports along their sailing itinerary, resulting in more ships being retrofitted.

Shore power will also be available on all Explora Journeys ships. In this year’s summer, the first ship of the new brand, Explora I, will enter service.

MSC Cruises’ VP of Sustainability & ESG, Linden Coppell, spoke about the importance of shore power in the company’s efforts to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions. With the exception of our newbuilds built since 2017, all of our other vessels in our fleet have been retrofitted to plug into local power grids.

In addition to demonstrating our ambition, she stressed that we are committed to reducing emissions from our ships while in port.

In Europe and beyond, we need more ports to introduce shore power as soon as possible to reduce local air quality emissions and we have invested heavily in hybrid exhaust gas cleaning systems. As a company that visits and serves ports, we have a responsibility to reduce emissions in ports.

By utilizing LNG fuel, improving energy efficiency, using innovative wastewater treatment and waste recycling techniques, we are playing a part in addressing climate change and protecting ocean biodiversity.