On Monday 17 June, the European Commission authorised a €570 million Italian scheme to encourage ships at berth to use cleaner electricity, by reducing the cost of that electricity.
The aid will take the form of a reduction of up to 100% of ‘system overheads’, initially. This reduction will translate into lower electricity prices for ship operators when purchasing electricity provided at berth. The cost of this energy will thus be brought to a level that is competitive compared with the cost of generating electricity on board, using engines powered by fossil fuels.
The aim of this measure is to make electricity generated on shore more attractive, since, according to the Commission, it is more environmentally friendly and produces less noise.
The European Commission pointed out that Italy had also undertaken to set up an annual control mechanism to verify the difference between the actual costs of purchasing electricity supplied at berth and the actual costs of generating electricity on board. The level of aid will be adjusted accordingly. (Original version in French by Émilie Vanderhulst)