Montevideo to become 1st port in South America to offer ‘cold ironing’

Terminal Cuenca del Plata (TCP) in Uruguay has plans to install electrical infrastructure to offer ships “cold ironing” services, that is, connecting vessels to an external power source, allowing them to turn off their engines. Montevideo will be the first port in South America to offer such services, reported Montevideo.com.

In a seminar held in Paraguay, Vincent Vandecauter, general manager of TCP, and the president of the National Administration of Ports, Juan Curbelo, commented on this project that entails the largest investment in the history of the port of Montevideo.

The executive predicted that by the end of 2025, TCP will have two docks with four berths totaling more than 1,300 meters of berthing front, allowing the world’s largest ships to dock while also helping the terminal to operate more ships and barges concurrently.

The manager of Katoen Natie explained that with the current infrastructure, TCP is prepared to receive ships with a draft of up to 14 meters, while the second dock is designed to support vessels with a draft of up to 17 meters.

At the same time, he remarked that the maritime world’s standards are escalating, and one of the most challenging issues that marine lines face is complying with environmental rules. In this sense, he noted that the goal of TCP with the “cold ironing service” is for vessels to connect to the terminal’s electrical network. As a result, Uruguay will be the first country in South America to provide cold ironing to container ships.

“With ‘cold ironing,’ we will help our clients comply with environmental regulations. It is a vital asset to transform the port of Montevideo into a hub port,” said Vandecauter.

In the long term, once the expansion works are completed, TCP will have the capacity to install up to eight cranes in the currently-existing dock and nine cranes in the second dock. With this investment in infrastructure, the terminal will increase its annual capacity to 3 million TEUs per year.

Source: MundoMaritimo

To read the full original article, please go to: https://www.mundomaritimo.cl/noticias/montevideo-sera-el-primer-puerto-en-sudamerica-que-ofrecera-servicio-de-cold-ironing

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