The cold-ironing era has begun for MSC. Throughout the summer season, in fact, two of the fleet’s ships will be constantly using shoreside power during their calls at two Northern European ports.
The MSC Virtuosa will be able to receive shoreside power at the new Horizon Cruise Terminal at the port of Southampton, in the United Kingdom, and the MSC Poesia, will be linked up to the electricity network at the port of Rostock-Warnemünde, in Germany.
The Geneva-based shipping company itself disclosed the news, announcing that by the end of the current calendar year there will already be 11 units equipped with shoreside power capability.
The real challenge, now, is to be able to equip other ports with the infrastructure suitable for the development of this type of power supply.
Linden Coppell, director of sustainability at Msc Cruises said that they need other ports, in other key markets in Europe, to also enable this service to be used as quickly as possible, joining MSC’s efforts to achieve zero net emissions by 2050.
Coppell added that wherever shoreside power is available, MSC would prioritize the use of their ships with this capability.
Translation by Giles Foster
