Shore Power Installation to Begin at Heysham, UK this Month

NatPower Marine and Peel Ports Group will begin installing shore power facilities at Heysham Port this month. The first connection will go live in the initial phase, with expansion to four plugs across all berths by 2026. This development will allow all Heysham routes in the Irish Sea to operate with zero emissions while docked and at sea, supporting fully electric ferry services as part of a wider plan to electrify the Irish Sea.

The Heysham project is part of a broader £100 million ($136 million) collaboration between NatPower Marine and Peel Ports Group to deploy e-ship charging infrastructure across the operator’s terminals.

Martin Olverson, development director marine at NatPower Marine, said: “Heysham is where the UK’s first green shipping corridor becomes real. One plug will soon become four, serving every Heysham route to Ireland and giving operators the confidence to move quickly on vessel electrification. We are building the backbone of a clean shipping network so ferry and freight lines can invest in the next generation of zero-emission ships.”

NatPower Marine has highlighted the scale of the challenge, stating that decarbonizing global shipping will require 4 petawatt-hours (PWh) of clean energy annually — equivalent to the yearly electricity consumption of the United States.

The company aims to invest in a global charging network spanning 120 ports by 2030. As part of this effort, NatPower Marine has partnered with Hong Kong-based shipowner Wah Kwong Maritime Transport to launch Wah Kwong NatPower, a joint venture dedicated to large-scale shore power and vessel charging projects across Asia. Initial projects will begin in Qingdao and Hong Kong.