Tag Archives: Boris Johnson

Southampton Port ‘on course’ for shore power

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Port of Southampton Photo credit Dave Jones

Southampton remains “on course” to be the first port in the UK to introduce shore power for cruise ships.

Shore power, which is also called cold ironing, reduces the time ships are required to run their engines in port, reducing pollution.

Associated British Ports (ABP) said it would meet its previous pledge to install the technology in Southampton in 2020.

Shipping is forecast to emit between 2% and 6% of nitrogen dioxide emissions in Southampton, ABP’s Port Air Quality Strategy said in 2018.

A report to Southampton councillors in January 2019 said shore power could deliver “public health benefits” and the council applied for a £7 million government grant for the project, that was later rejected due to concerns over insufficient benefits and the speed of delivery

However, prime minister Boris Johnson said he was “very interested” in the proposals in the lead up to the recent General Election.

ABP said its shore power pledge remained “on course” although issues remained over funding and a large amount of power needed for large cruise ships.

Port director Alastair Welch said: “What we don’t want to do is to plug a ship in and brownout the city.”

Cold ironing is already available for cruise ships in the United States, Canada and some European ports.

Council approves new cruise terminal for London

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 If you live in or near London and you feel the city is not getting its fair share of the cruise market, you will undoubtedly be delighted to hear that a brand new passenger cruise terminal has been approved for the city. 

Boris Johnson, London’s mayor, made this announcement recently. The planned terminal was first mentioned in the press about six months ago; however, a group of local residents voiced opposition to the plan, saying that fumes from the ships’ fuel will negatively affect air quality in the area. 

Sir Edward Lister, the city’s deputy mayor for planning, said: “We have worked with the local authority and the developer to ensure the new terminal and surrounding infrastructure will meet the needs of thousands of tourists coming to the city each year.” The terminal will be near the iconic Cutty Sark and the historic Old Royal Navy College, right in the centre of London.

 It is scheduled to open in 2017 and will be able to accommodate cruise ships up to 850 feet in length. Initial projections are that around 55 ships per year will make use of the facilities. 

New retail outlets, restaurants and residential housing are also planned for the surrounding area. Councillor Danny Thorpe, Greenwich Council’s cabinet member for transport and regeneration, said the council realised that the effect on air quality concerned many locals, but the measures proposed by the council to address this issue were independently scrutinised and found to be adequate