MSC Cruises has revealed that from the end of May, two of its ships will be using shore power.

The line’s MSC Virtuosa will plug in at the Port of Southampton’s new Horizon Cruise Terminal, and MSC Poesia in Rostock-Warnemünde, Germany.

Shore power enables ships to turn off their engines and connect to local electric power to run their on-board systems.

This process cuts emissions produced from diesel generators, improving local air quality and reducing noise and vibration levels.

The move to use shore power is part of MSC Cruises’ plan to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

MSC Cruises director of sustainability Linden Coppell said: “We look forward to using shore power in Southampton and Warnemünde throughout the summer season and we congratulate the port authorities for their forward-thinking and innovative commitment.

“We at MSC Cruises are continuously striving to improve our environmental footprint, and shore power allows us to do so by drastically reducing our ships’ emissions while berthed.

“We need more ports in other key markets in Europe to introduce shore power as quickly as possible, thus joining our efforts towards net zero emissions by 2050 and greatly reducing our local air emissions.

“We are committed to supporting authorities in developing shoreside power for our ships while in port. We have a clear and unequivocal position, that wherever shore power is available we will prioritise ships that have that capability.

“To ensure compatibility with the visiting ships’ systems, we are collaborating closely with port authorities and engineering companies in charge of the infrastructure design.

“Aspects, such as on-board energy demands and ship technical systems, need to be considered as part of shore side planning.”

MSC to expand shore power capability

MSC has also signed a memorandum of understanding with Cruise Baltic to look at the use of shore power in the Baltic region as soon as possible and no later than 1 January 2024.

MSC added that 11 of its 21 ships, including all new builds since 2017, will be fitted with shore power capability by the end of this year.

A total of 14 ships have been fitted with hybrid exhaust gas cleaning systems and by the end of 2022, the five newest vessels will have selective catalytic reduction systems, which convert nitrogen oxides into harmless nitrogen and water, MSC said.

MSC World Europa and MSC Euribia, which are currently under construction and scheduled for delivery in 2022 and 2023, respectively, will be MSC Cruises’ first LNG-powered vessels