Mega yacht owners visiting the Port of Palm Beach can now switch off their engines and connect to shore power while docked at the port.
“Shore power is the project to bring electric power from one of our main substations into the berth so it can be used by the ship at berths,” said Port Engineer Ron Coddington.
The $1 million project was funded 50/50 by a Florida Department of Transportation grant.
“There are three power pedestals that bring 400 amps of 480 volt power to the dock to be used by ships,” Coddington said.
The shore power hookups allow port tenant Berth One Palm Beach to optimize berth space. The new service not only benefits Berth One Palm Beach’s customers, but it also benefits port neighbors. Shore power eliminates the noise of generators and cuts engine emissions.
“What it does for our vessels here is we know that from EPA studies, when shore power is used versus on board generators that are diesel powered, we can reduce emissions up to 98% by using our power company power instead of generators or engines on the dock. It’s good for our environment, it’s good for our port and it’s good for the vessels that call here,” Coddington said.
