Work is currently underway on the design of the hydrogen-powered port machinery, as well as the Hydrogen Refuelling Station needed to supply this fuel.
Valencia – 06.11.19. The head of environmental policies of the Port Authority of Valencia (PAV), Raúl Cascajo, has presented in the conference “Mobility and sustainable logistics in port areas” held in Bilbao the advances of the H2PORTS project, which is being carried out in the port of Valencia and which will allow it to become the first European port area to use hydrogen energy in its container terminals. The conference, which was attended by nearly 100 people from different sectors and fields of research, aimed to learn about the main projects being developed in ports to reduce environmental impact and advance the transition to renewable energy.
During the meeting, Raúl Cascajo explained that the H2PORTS project is part of Valenciaport’s policy of applying new technologies to reduce emissions. This project, to which an investment of 4 million euros has been allocated and which is financed by the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCHJU) programme, has the participation of the PAV, the Fundación Valenciaport, the National Hydrogen Centre and the companies MSC Terminal Valencia, Grimaldi Group, Hyster-Yale, Atena, Ballard Power Systems Europe and ENAGAS.
As explained by the head of environmental policies at Valenciaport, work is currently underway on the design of the port machinery that will enable the pilot project to be carried out. Specifically, the H2PORTS project includes the implementation of a hydrogen-powered reach stacker for loading/unloading and container transport that will operate at MSC Terminal Valencia and a tractor head for ro-ro operations, powered by a hydrogen fuel cell that will be used at the Grimaldi terminal. Likewise, the construction of a mobile hydrogen supply station is planned to provide the necessary fuel to guarantee the continuous work cycles of this equipment. This station will be developed with criteria of safety and economic profitability with the aim of contributing to the decarbonisation of the logistics-port chain.
With the development of these pilot projects it will be possible to test and validate hydrogen technology on port machinery in order to have applicable and real solutions, without affecting the performance and safety of port operations and with zero local emissions. In this way, Grimaldi and MSC terminals will become the first European port facilities to use hydrogen-powered machinery.
Likewise, Raul Cascajo pointed out that the H2PORTS project has also set itself the objective of carrying out feasibility studies for the development of a sustainable hydrogen supply chain in the port, coordinating all the actors involved: customers, hydrogen producers, suppliers, etc. In this sense, Cascajo has highlighted that this pilot project is being carried out due to the possibilities of hydrogen as an alternative energy source since it can be obtained from renewable electricity. The use of hydrogen in combination with fuel cells produces only water vapour and has no impact on the environment.
The challenge towards energy self-sufficiency
The H2PORTS project is part of the strategic project for the development of renewable energies with which Valenciaport aims to achieve energy self-sufficiency between 2025 and 2030, becoming the first European port to achieve this milestone. This project contemplates the progressive substitution of conventional fossil fuels by other cleaner ones such as Liquid Natural Gas (LNG). To this end, the port of Valencia is building a gas station operated by Molgas that will be the largest fixed LNG bunkering station in the European Union. This facility will have an approximate capacity of 400 m3 and will be able to supply two ships simultaneously with an operational capacity of 200 m3 per hour on each supply line.
As far as renewable energies are concerned, the PAV plans to promote, in addition to hydrogen energy, photovoltaic and wind power. To this end, the PAV will present to the Regional Ministry a project for the installation of a wind power plant that would generate between 12 and 16 MW in a first phase. With an estimated cost of between 13 and 18 million euros, the installation would have an annual production of 27,000 MWh in its first phase. In the case of photovoltaic solar energy, it is planned to tender for an installation of around 800 KWH of solar energy in the port of Valencia at an estimated cost of around 600,000 euros.
The PAV also plans to build an electrical substation that will allow us to stop the ships’ engines when they are ready to be connected to the network once they have docked in the port. This substation will have a power of 30 MW and will require an investment of 8 million euros.
Over the last two decades, the PAV has participated in projects in the field of sustainability that have involved an investment of more than 200 million euros. Some of the initiatives developed by the port include waste management; air quality control through a permanent measurement station; water and sediment quality controls; noise emission controls by means of sound level meters, as well as energy efficiency initiatives to reduce consumption (light and water) in all aspects of port operations in cooperation with the agents that make up the port community. Thanks to these measures, Valenciaport has obtained the most demanding certifications in environmental matters such as ISO 14.001 or the European Emas III regulation and is also the first European port to achieve this. These initiatives have enabled Valenciaport to reduce its energy intensity by 11.5%, from 1.97% of energy consumed per unit of goods in 2000 to a level of 0.947 last year.
Fuel Cells and Hydrogen Joint undertaking (FCH JU):
This public-private collaboration entity is the European body that promotes the adoption of hydrogen as a low-emission alternative and receives support through the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programmes, Hydrogen Europe Research and Hydrogen Europe.
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