Siemens builds Germany’s largest power terminal for ships

The Siharbor solution, a 16 megavolt amperes (MVA) system, will have capacity to supply two ships simultaneously with ’green’ power. Siemens estimates this will reduce annual CO₂ emissions by 8,000 tonnes.

Port of Kiel managing director Dirk Claus said “The shore connection system lets us draw electricity from renewable energy sources, both for cruise ships docked at the Ostseekai and for the ferry at the Schwedenkai.” Mr Claus said the shore power system will help the port actively support the climate objectives of the Schleswig-Holstein state capital.
He added that in future “60% of the energy demand required by the ships entering Kiel will be covered by climate-friendly shore power as diesel generators will be shut down while they are berthed.”

The installation consists of one substation with four Geafol cast resin transformers, four air-insulated medium-voltage Nxair switchgears and an 16-MVA frequency converter. The cast resin transformers with a rated power of 6 and 16 MVA are suited for challenging environmental conditions such as the salty air around the port.

Siemens’ converter system – Siplink – provides the mooring vessels with uninterrupted power. With this system, two medium-voltage networks with different frequencies can be connected. In this configuration, supplying the local distribution grid with 50 Hz and the ship’s onboard electrical system with 60 Hz.

Siplink synchronises both networks and takes over the power supply within a few minutes, according to a statement, co-ordinating the energy supply of the ships’ two networks so that power can be supplied to both simultaneously.

Kiel city aims to be CO₂ neutral by 2050 and shipping will have to play its part as the port is the point of departure for cruises and has ferry connections to the Baltic states and Scandinavia.

The new shore power system at the port aims to support the industry’s decarbonisation goals. Siemens previously installed a shoreside power supply at the Norwegenkai in 2019. The company estimated that to-date, that power supply has helped reduce CO₂ emissions by about 1,000 tonnes.

The Siharbor system is expected to go into test operation in the 2020 cruise ship season.

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