Stop fumes in ports with 700 million from the Pnrr for cold ironing: electrified docks by 2030 to cut smog and noise.
Enough with ships sitting in ports with their engines running. For those who live in cities overlooking the main Italian airports, from Genoa to Triesteuntil Civitavecchiathe presence of boats generates annoying background noise and columns of smoke.
Even at mooring, the giants of the sea – from cruise ships to container ships – must keep their auxiliary generators active (diesel or LNG) to guarantee electricity on board. The result is a toxic mix of CO2, nitrogen oxides and fine particles spilled close to residential areas, accompanied by noise pollution that undermines the quality of life of residents. And this is where the theme of “cold ironing” comes into play.
The plug on land to turn off the giants of the sea
The term was born in the era of steam ships, when the iron engines, once turned off, literally became cold. Today, however, it indicates the technology of Onshore power supply (Ops), i.e. the system that allows ships to completely turn off the on-board generators during stops at ports and to “plug in” to the shore electrical network thanks to theelectrification of the docks. It is not just an ecological choice, but an obligation imposed byEuropean Union. The EU Afir regulation and the FuelEU Maritime package impose precise deadlines: by 2030, all large ports and ships over 5 thousand tons will have to strictly use shore-based electricity during berth.
Easier said than done: the undertaking involves huge investments and an action plan as impressive as the sector you want to revolutionize. Thanks to around 700 million euros from Pnrr and the latest national regulations on energy costs, Italy has opened construction sites. The Ministry of Transport moved quickly and announced last July that it had completed the adoption of the national guidelines for the issuing of cold ironing service concessions on time. Alongside the environmental benefits, the massive electrification plan brings with it significant leverage. The construction and management of the network requires thousands of new specialized jobs along the entire supply chain. Among the most sought after professional figures are electrical and process engineers, designers of high and medium voltage systems, maintenance technicians of Bess storage systemsplatform programmers from Artificial intelligence for energy optimization, professionals for the management of dock logistics and figures specialized in port safety and environmental regulations.
The economic balance between energy costs and reforms
Then there is the issue of costs for shipowners. In January 2026, a decree introduced the first fundamental rules, after the tariff concessions and relief on system charges for energy supplied to ships: a crucial measure to bridge the economic gap between the cost of land electricity and that of marine fuel. A fixed point shared by the sector. As he points out Stefano Messinapresident of Assaulters: «Italy is the first country in Europe to equip itself with a national cold ironing network in its commercial ports, thanks to a total investment of around one billion: this is certainly good news. Turning off on-board generators during stops at ports will be a turning point from an environmental point of view, especially for those ports nestled within cities. If the timetable is respected, we should be fully operational by the middle of next year. However, the final cost of the energy drawn from the quay, plus any system charges and ancillary costs, must be no more than the cost of the fuel and the ETS that the shipowner would have paid to generate energy on board”.
In fact, economic sustainability remains the tip of the balance for shipping companies. Mario Zanettipresident of Confitweaponhighlights the need for an overall vision: «The path requires close collaboration between the public and private sectors. The work carried out by the MIT in defining the regulatory framework for cold ironing, to the preparation of which we contributed, goes in this direction. But for it to fully express its benefits it is necessary to guarantee energy from clean sources, competitive costs compared to self-production on board and adequate support for investments, not only for the electrification of the docks but also for the adaptation of ships”.
As for large cruise ships, which have always been in the spotlight for their environmental impact and energy consumption, optimism dominates. Francesco Galiettidirector of Clia (Cruise Lines International Association) Italy, reassures: «No, we are not worried. There has been important work by the ministry together with stakeholders, with an acceleration that will allow Italy to be at the forefront in the development of this technology by the end of 2027. We are convinced that the work carried out will allow us to manage this transition phase in the best possible way.”
Maintaining networks and optimizing consumption
Once the regulatory and economic tangle has been unraveled, a major technical critical issue remains on the table: the structural stress on local electricity networks. When multiple cruise ships or huge container ships connect simultaneously in a single port of call, the energy demand is equivalent to that of a small city, risking putting the city’s infrastructure in crisis.
A challenge that shifts the center of gravity from cable laying to intelligent flow management. To explain how this obstacle can be overcome is Marcellus Stanislauschief development officer of NatPower Marine Italy: «Cold ironing represents one of the most important steps forward in the energy transition. The real systemic difficulty does not lie in the technological aspects, but in the ability to manage energy and supply it efficiently in daily port life. The greater the integration between the infrastructure manager, operators and shipowners, the greater the efficiency.”
To avoid peaks and short circuits, the answer comes from process innovation. «The model we have developed», continues Stanislao, «envisages the use of long-term contracts for the purchase of renewable energy (PPA), Bess storage systems to manage peaks in demand and digital platforms based on Artificial intelligence to predict and optimize consumption. The objective is not simply to electrify the docks, but to make cold ironing an accessible solution for shipowners, efficient for ports and capable of generating concrete benefits for local communities.” What is underway is therefore a decisive game: transforming the docks into cutting-edge energy hubs to demonstrate that the ecological transition of the sea can flow at full megawatts. The challenge will be to achieve this without sending the port economy and shipowners’ accounts into a tailspin, avoiding blackouts in entire cities overlooking the ports.
