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THE SUSTAINABLE, SMART PORT

Port of Tyne to demonstrate blueprint for decarbonisation of UK ports.

The Port of Tyne will unveil a new sustainable smart port platform that will provide a blueprint for its transition to net zero at an event held at its Maritime 2050 Innovation Hub on Wednesday 6 April.

As part of the Clean Tyne Project, the Port of Tyne and Siemens have worked with Connected Places Catapult, Newcastle University and the North East LEP to deploy a real-time digital platform for scenario planning and feasibility studies that will help determine the future power needs of the Port. Understanding its current and forecast power usage as well as its infrastructure opportunities will enable the Port to define its path to decarbonisation – and ultimately achieve its vision of becoming a net-zero port by 2050, part of the Port’s overall Tyne 2050 strategy for growth.

The Clean Tyne project was granted funding by the Department of Transport to create a blueprint for the decarbonisation of the UK’s ports. The project is part of the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition, which sees £30m in total invested in a number of initiatives to reduce emissions from the maritime sector.

The project consortium has built on its extensive technical expertise, academic research and wider industry knowledge to integrate multi-vector renewable energy information into the purpose-built digital port platform. This allows the partners to determine which renewable energy implementations will offer the greatest benefits to the Port and what capacity it will need from the grid going forward ensuring the optimisation and resilience of clean energy supplies for shore power, land-based infrastructure and other use cases.

By using this form of planning, the Port of Tyne can evaluate the benefits of introducing new technology solutions before implementing them, thus minimising risk. The planning will focus on multiple areas including optimised operations, grid compliance and flexibility, enhanced communications using 5G, the electrification of shipping and logistics, the reduction or avoidance of fossil fuels and the development of new digital skills.

Testbed for other UK ports

The digital platform will play a fundamental role throughout the Port’s decarbonisation journey by supporting the creation of business cases, budget planning and investment cases. It will also allow the project consortium to assess the technical, environmental and economic impact of the Port. Using the Port of Tyne as a testbed, the Clean Tyne project’s digital energy platform has enabled Siemens and its partners to develop a universal blueprint for decarbonisation that can be replicated in other port environments as well as other industries.

The event on 6 April will be held in-person and online. To register to attend the event, visit Port of Tyne – Clean Tyne Project | Eventbrite

Quotes from the project partners

“The success of the Clean Tyne project is testament to the expertise, research and collaboration of the consortium. The project outputs show real benefits to decarbonisation efforts across the UK Port Sector and will be the backbone for future developments in that space. This tool will be pivotal for the Port of Tyne to achieve its ambitious decarbonisation and environmental targets, and we are already exploring how we can expand the benefits further. Using the 2050 Innovation Hub at the Port of Tyne, the first of its kind aligned to Maritime 2050, has given us the perfect platform to demonstrate and disseminate the learnings and outputs with all ports in the UK.” Ian Blake, Head of Innovation and Technology at the Port of Tyne

“There are hundreds of ports across world, all burning a lot of diesel and impacting the environment. Through the Clean Tyne project with the Port of Tyne we have been able to undertake an advanced feasibility study and to create a dependable and scalable roadmap for the decarbonisation of ports worldwide.” Ian Lloyd, Head of Microgrid Solutions, Siemens

“This project is a great example of how digital technologies can be applied to drive decarbonisation of our regional infrastructure.  North East LEP via the North East Energy Catalyst will work to share the results of the project and help other ports and industries learn from the findings in the Clean Tyne project.” David Lynch, Energy Innovation Partnerships Manager – North East LEP

“Through the Clean Tyne project, we have been able to apply novel concepts of digitalisation in real-world energy systems to help identify solutions for ports that cut across energy systems, marine transport, and data – all helping reduce carbon emissions. We are excited to have the opportunity to present the findings to the wider maritime community.” Dr Haris Patsios, Senior Lecturer in Power Systems, Newcastle University

“Ports are critical stakeholders in the future clean energy transition at sea and on land. Access to and supporting renewable energy sources such as solar, wind and tidal so ports become energy hubs across multiple modes of transport; is vital if we are to accelerate our journey to net zero. This has been an exciting project that demonstrated how digital infrastructure helps make greener ports possible. The Port of Tyne now has a set of clear next steps and we have invaluable transferable insight for ports across the UK.” Paul Wilson, Chief Business Officer, Connected Places Catapult

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