MSC Cruises continued advancing its commitment to environmental sustainability last Wednesday by successfully connecting MSC World Europa to shore power in the port of Valletta, Malta – the first operational shore power facility in the Mediterranean.
The cruise line performed its first tests at Valetta earlier this year, which led to refinements in the port’s shore power implementation process and last week’s successful connection. MSC World Europa will connect to the shore power facilities from now on while calling in Valletta. The ship will call every week during 2024 and 2025.
MSC Cruises is committed to using shore power wherever it is available. The technology is an integral part of the company’s journey toward net zero greenhouse gas emission operations by 2050. Using shore power allows a ship to connect to the local power grid and removes the need to keep a ship’s engine running, which eliminates direct emissions while the vessel is connected in port.
Every new ship joining the MSC Cruises fleet since 2017 has been equipped with a shore power connection, with plans underway to retrofit additional ships. The line has been able to increase the number of port calls utilizing shore power as more ports introduce the required facilities. The historic connection in Valletta follows recent successful connections in Northern Europe – including Warnemünde in Germany; the Norwegian ports at Bergen, Aalesund and Haugesund; and Southampton in the UK. Earlier this year, MSC Cruises inaugurated a new shore power facility in Kiel, Germany.
MSC Cruises aims to add at least 15 new ports to its shore power plan between 2024 and 2026, focusing on ports in Italy, including Genoa, La Spezia, Civitavecchia, Naples and Trieste, as well as prominent ports such as Barcelona, Hamburg, Valencia, Marseille, Copenhagen, and at its new cruise terminal in Miami opening next year. MSC Cruises acknowledges the importance of collaboration with ports and regions in achieving sustainable maritime practices. The company signed a Memorandum of Understanding to enhance shore power facilities in the Baltic Sea area, and similar commitments are being pursued with other ports in the Mediterranean Sea.
Michele Francioni, SVP Cost Optimisation & Process Improvement, MSC Cruises, said, "Our shore power plan demonstrates that we are fully committed to reducing emissions from our ships. Using shore power is a major step forward because it allows us to eliminate a ship’s direct emissions whilst berthed. We need more ports across Europe and beyond to introduce shore power as quickly as possible so that we can further reduce local air emissions. We will ensure our ships are ready to connect wherever the facilities are available to us. Connecting MSC World Europa to the shore power in Valletta is a proud achievement and we are grateful for the collaboration and excellent cooperation with Transport Malta, Infrastructure Malta and the Maltese authorities, as well as with the Cruise Port of Valetta.”
MSC World Europa was MSC Cruises’ first vessel to be powered by liquefied natural gas. As one of the world’s best performing large cruise ships in terms of CO2eq emissions per passenger, MSC World Europa represents a major step forward on MSC Cruises’ journey toward achieving net-zero emissions by 2050. MSC World Europa is also among the first contemporary cruise ships to incorporate solid oxide fuel cell technology, with trial tests showing very promising results.
