New shore power plants and sustainable initiatives in N. Europe

Notably, the destinations in Northern Europe are committed to implementing shore power.

Onshore power supply is a hot topic, and as more and more cruise ships are being built or retrofitted with shore power facilities, it is essential for the ports to keep on track. Within Cruise Baltic, this is an ongoing process and a determined goal, and fortunately, things are moving in the right direction.

In May, Copenhagen reached a significant milestone as they commenced the construction of the largest shore power facilities for cruise in Europe. The facilities include five connection points, two at Langelinie and three at Oceankaj. Next year, it can supply 20 MW/h, and by 2028, once fully operational, the facilities can supply 32 MW/h.

However, Copenhagen is not the only destination acting on this matter. Rostock, Kristiansand, and Aarhus already offer shore power, and more destinations will follow soon. In April, Oslo completed a shore power plant on the Revier Pier for vessels up to 300 m., which is now operational. In 2025, they will also offer shore power at the Filipstad Pier for vessels up to 340 m.

In Stockholm, they have installed two shore power plants on each quay at Stadsgården. The facility on Stadsgården 167, the largest quay, is ready for use, and the one on Stadsgården 160 will be very soon. Finally, Klaipeda has scheduled the construction of a new cruise terminal, Cruise Terminal 2, including onshore power facilities. The operations will begin in 2026.

Despite the extensive process, the number of destinations in Northern Europe offering shore power is slowly but steadily increasing. If you are curious to learn more about shore power in the region, please take a look at the Shore Power Map on cruisebaltic.com.

Olso and Revierkaien

Seamless infrastructure is key

Notably, the destinations in Northern Europe are committed to implementing shore power.

Another important focus is to improve the port-city infrastructure. When cruising the Baltic Sea region, the guests should experience the destinations rather than spend time in transit. The partners within Cruise Baltic are well aware of this and are working on minimising transit time while investigating the use of electric vehicles to reduce exhaustion and noise.

Gothenburg has continued the work done in 2022, where they implemented a shuttle boat service as an alternative to shuttle buses. During 2023, a cruise line successfully trialled this service three times and has now shown an interest in implementing the service for several of their calls to Gothenburg in 2024. Furthermore, Gothenburg continues to push for public transport from the America Terminal due to its proximity to the city centre and the old town of Haga.

Haga in Gothenburg, Sweden

Year-round cruise destination

Although Autumn and winter in Northern Europe might be associated with cold weather and dark, short days, the region offers something quietly wonderful during this period.

Kotka and Hamina have succeeded in extending the season from January to October, as most shopkeepers have adapted their opening hours to the demands of cruise guests. In addition, they prioritise local suppliers with a sustainable certificate for their marketing campaigns toward cruise lines to hopefully encourage more suppliers to improve on this matter.

HaminaKotka, Finland

More sustainable initiatives to uncover

As Cruise Baltic consists of 32 ports and destinations, there are many more sustainable initiatives to uncover. If you want to learn more, please find the full Sustainability Report HERE. The report is the annual follow-up on the objectives of the ambitious Cruise Baltic Sustainability Manifesto of 2019, created in collaboration with all Cruise Baltic partners. The vision of the Manifesto is to “Make cruising a sustainable vacation offer in 2030”, and these initiatives all illustrate examples of how the partners of Cruise Baltic are actively working with sustainability to fulfil this.

Cruise Baltic is determined to offer cruise guests an unforgettable experience in the Baltic Sea region and get them to discover why each of our destinations holds a piece of the bigger secret that makes us who we are. For more information about Cruise Baltic, visit cruisebaltic.com.