By
Laura Hyde |
MSC Cruises’ MSC World Europa has successfully connected to shore power for the first time at the Valletta Cruise Port in Malta.
The shore power facility, which is the first in the Mediterranean, became operational on 1 December 2023. MSC World Europa will call at the port every week throughout 2024 and 2025 and will connect to the shore power facilities on each visit. MSC Cruises performed the first tests at Valletta earlier this year and says the experience gained has “contributed to refining the shore power implementation process”.
MSC Cruises’ vessels have previously connected to shore power at Warnemünde in Germany, Southampton in the UK and the Norwegian ports of Bergen, Aalesund and Haugesund. MSC Cruises inaugurated the new shore power facility in Kiel, Germany in September 2023.
The cruise operator is committed to the use of shore power wherever available and has plans to add at least 15 new ports to its shore power plan between 2024 and 2026. It hopes to add Genoa, La Spezia, Civitavecchia, Naples and Trieste in Italy, as well as Barcelona and Valencia in Spain, Hamburg in Germany, Marseille in France, and Copenhagen in Denmark.
Every new MSC Cruises ship since 2017 has been equipped with a shore power connection and plans are underway to retrofit the entire fleet.
“Our shore power plan demonstrates that we are fully committed to reducing emissions from our ships,” said Michele Francioni, senior vice president of cost optimisation and process improvement, MSC Cruises. “Connecting MSC World Europa to the shore power in Valletta is a proud achievement and we are grateful for the collaboration and excellent cooperation with Transport Malta, Infrastructure Malta and the Maltese authorities, as well as with the Cruise Port of Valetta.”