A new study published today [Tuesday 12 September 2023] suggests that Freeport East could become a new UK centre for transport decarbonisation. The study outlines how Freeport East can facilitate the international partnerships and investment necessary for the Green Hydrogen Hub to support maritime and wider transport sectors. 

Freeport East includes the Port of Felixstowe, the UK’s biggest container port and the main destination for container traffic to and from Europe and the Far East – these routes are central to many of the leading green corridor* initiatives, which are seen as key to achieving ambitious maritime decarbonisation objectives.

While the shipping sector is expected to grow by 30-70 per cent by 2050, 60 per cent of new vessel orders in 2022 were for multi-fuel vessels, demonstrating  that the transition to clean fuels is already moving at pace. By positioning Freeport East and the wider region into the rapidly growing clean fuels market, it could support many hundreds of skilled jobs and bring significant economic benefits to the local area.

The findings build on research earlier this year that indicated a potential demand for 500MW of hydrogen by 2030 in the Freeport East area.  Both reports support the development of the Freeport East Green Hydrogen Hub – aiming to harness abundant local renewable energy to produce green hydrogen for future transport uses.  

Freeport East will share findings of the report today at London’s International Shipping Week, which attracts global investors in the maritime sector.  It will also be presented at the World Hydrogen Congress in Rotterdam in October.  

Key findings from the report include:

–        Over 4000 vessels pass through Freeport East each year, which creates a potential need for over 180 tonnes of hydrogen per day for green maritime fuels, or 450MW of new electrolyser capacity

–        Freeport East has significant container port capacity, which could have a critical role to play in the development of hydrogen-enabled green shipping corridors through partnering with international  ports and shipping lines and brokering new global partnerships

–        Investment in new local hydrogen refuelling infrastructure would help reduce carbon emissions from A14 traffic flows, benefiting communities in Freeport East, Cambridge, and other parts of the UK

–        New hydrogen investment in the logistics sector could be triggered by the strategic opportunities generated by the existing fuel stations and newer development sites in Felixstowe and along the A14

Steve Beel, Chief Executive of Freeport East, said:  “This latest report confirms our goal for Freeport East to act as a hub for transport decarbonisation, reducing emissions both on land and at sea. It highlights opportunities to build new partnerships that will support maritime decarbonisation on a global level, while also providing local economic and employment opportunities within the Freeport East area.

“We look forward to working with a range of industry partners to take these opportunities forward, as well as working with the UK Government to ensure the right policy and subsidy support mechanisms are in place to deliver this critical piece of decarbonisation and our net zero ambitions.”

Dr Jehan Kanga of Rux Energy, an Australian company specialising in advanced materials development for hydrogen storage, is already working closely with Freeport East. Dr Kanga comments: “We welcome the emphasis on international collaboration which this report highlights in relation to developing a cleaner maritime fuels sector, resonating with a number of bilateral clean technology agreements between the UK, Singapore, Australia and other trading partners. 

“Rux has already started building links from Australia into the UK, anchored from Freeport East. We are passionate about the need for global coordination to deliver an acceleration of the innovation needed for a cleaner maritime and transportation sector. Freeport East can act as a central player in bringing these international collaborations together and ensuring the UK and its trading partners benefit fully from the shared value generated from scale investment in maritime energy transition.”

One major green hydrogen supply project, led by Scottish Power and Hutchison Ports, is already under development in Felixstowe which is already encouraging investment.

One major green hydrogen supply project, led by ScottishPower and Hutchison Ports, is already under development in Felixstowe and is encouraging investment.

Mark Griffin, Head of Hydrogen Market Development at ScottishPower, said: “We welcome the findings of this report, which outline the need to decarbonise hard-to-electrify sectors like heavy transport and industrial processes. We’re working with Hutchison Ports to explore the potential of green hydrogen to support the ambition to decarbonise the area in and around Felixstowe – the UK’s largest container terminal.” 

The European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO) welcomes the aim of the Commission’s Green Deal Industrial Plan to ensure that the European Union can become an important player in the production and supply of net-zero products and technologies and a competitive player in these new sectors. ESPO also believes that a well-established net-zero industrial ecosystem in Europe is an important instrument for progressing fast and efficiently on the energy transition and reaching Europe’s climate ambitions. 

However, for ESPO, such a plan can only deliver if the whole supply chain is considered on top of the net-zero technology manufacturing projects. The deployment of net-zero industries and the stepping up of the security of supply of raw materials and spare parts for these industries must be accompanied by a policy to facilitate and support the adaptation and upgrading of the supply chain infrastructure, particularly in ports, hinterland connections and maritime access needs in order to realise this ambition. 

The importance of examining the supply chain needs resulting from the development of these new industries in Europe has been clearly recognised by the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN) in its opinion on the Net-Zero Industry Act proposal, voted on 19 July 2023. ESPO welcomes in particular the amendments 7, 12, 28, 32, 36, 38 of the adopted text. 

The Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE) of the European Parliament, which has the lead on this file, is currently preparing the compromise amendments. ESPO is happy to see that similar amendments, reflecting the supply chain approach, have been tabled in the ITRE Committee and hopes that these will be taken up in the compromises and the vote in the Committee scheduled on 12 October 2023.   

“To become an important player in the net-zero industry market, Europe needs to stimulate not only the production of net-zero industries and technologies but also the supply chain infrastructure needed to transport, export, store, import where relevant, the raw materials, spare parts needed for these industries as well as the finished products. We very much welcome the opinion of the Transport Committee of the Parliament in this regard. We do hope that the ITRE Committee will also integrate this supply chain approach in their report.” says ESPO’s Secretary General Isabelle Ryckbost.

Several ports in Europe will, because of their location near sources of raw materials and/or new net-zero industries, see their activities growing in a short period. Many other ports could be ideal locations for these new activities. It is important to ensure that the infrastructure in the port, accessibility to and from the port is adapted following these new needs. 

ESPO looks forward to continuing the dialogue with the Parliament and Council in view of achieving a final agreement that reflects these concerns. 

The Port of New Orleans was awarded $947,280 in recently announced Port Security Grant funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to support the expansion and enhancement of emergency services for Port NOLA’s maritime and industrial operations. 

With this funding award, Port NOLA will invest in physical and technological upgrades to the Port’s Emergency Operations Center (EOC) which serves as home base during hurricanes and other significant incidents. Additionally, funds will be used to purchase drones and to enhance the Harbor Police Department’s surveillance network. 

Last year the Port received $514,964 in Port Security Grant funding from FEMA to upgrade technology at the HPD’s Maritime Security Operations Center (MSOC), for a total of $1,462,244 in the past two years. 

The MSOC provides surveillance and communications equipment necessary for operational coordination and critical information-sharing with the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG) and other public safety agencies. The upgraded system will be secure for the current threat landscape and adaptable to meet evolving security needs. New MSOC and EOC technologies also align with the cybersecurity priorities set by the USCG Sector New Orleans Captain of the Port.

“The Port Security Grant Program further strengthens our ability to proactively protect critical infrastructure and supports the Port’s ongoing homeland security efforts, as well as our investigative and law enforcement services,” said Brandy D. Christian, Port NOLA President and CEO and CEO for the New Orleans Public Belt Railroad (NOPB).

FEMA’s Port Security Grant Program provides $100 million to agencies to help protect critical port infrastructure from terrorism, enhance maritime domain awareness, improve port-wide maritime security risk management, and maintain or re-establish maritime security mitigation protocols that support port recovery and resiliency capabilities.