Characteristics of Economic and Environmental Benefits of Shore Power Use by Container-Ship Size

Abstract

To combat climate change, efforts to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions are being made in all industries. The shipping sector is also one of the industries that emits GHG, including carbon. One way to reduce GHG emissions in the shipping sector is to use shore power (SP) rather than auxiliary engines during berthing. Port authorities are actively expanding SP facilities because it is possible to achieve the long-term goals of environmental benefits and green ports. However, the low economic feasibility of SP is a stumbling block for ship operators. Therefore, in this study, an economic analysis of SP use was conducted by container-ship size from the perspective of ship operators in consideration of benefits from differences in fuel oil and electricity prices, benefits through carbon emission reduction, and incentives from the port authorities. The result of the analysis showed that the benefit from the price of oil as well as the converted benefit from carbon emission reduction increased according to the size of the vessels. The economic analysis of a single port confirmed that small ships providing feeder services presented economic feasibility due to low installation costs and increased number of calls, while insufficient economic feasibility was presented for large ships above the old Panamax class due to the increased costs for installation. However, economic feasibility differs widely depending on whether port incentives are provided, and it was estimated that even large ships will be able to secure the economic feasibility of using SP if additional calls are made to ports that provide similar policy advantages.