By Karen Robes Meeks
The Port of Long Beach recently received $8 million in state funds for a $16.8 million project aimed at creating the infrastructure needed for electric equipment that can handle cargo and to test “the world’s first heavy-duty, off-road, direct current fast-charging system in a seaport environment.”
The California Energy Commission awarded the funds that will go toward the Port Advanced Vehicle Electrification Project, which will allow Total Terminals International at Pier T to move toward zero-emission operations.
Set for completion by March 2022, the project involves building charging outlets for nearly 40 pieces of electrical terminal equipment at TTI, modifying four battery-electric yard tractors so they link to a DC fast-charging system and creating a “port wide Dynamic Energy Forecasting Tool to predict how much energy and supporting infrastructure seaports will need to support zero-emissions terminal equipment,” according to the port. Meanwhile, the demonstration is anticipated to start in early 2021.
“When finished, this project will be a cost-effective, replicable model that the Port of Long Beach and others can use to speed progress to zero emissions,” said Harbor Commission President Lou Anne Bynum. “It’s part of a wide array of approaches we are using to reduce air pollution for our community and deliver on our promise as the Green Port.”
