The Port of Virginia has announced an ambitious target to meet all of its electrical power needs from clean energy sources within two years.
The port already uses renewable energy to power some of its cargo terminal operations, and this is projected to rise significantly. The port will begin receiving up to 10% of the output of new solar power plants totaling around 350 megawatts of capacity through a power-purchase agreement negotiated with utility Dominion Energy and the Virginia Department of Energy. The supply, combined with other solar, nuclear, and wind resources, will be sufficient to meet the port’s annual load of 130,000 megawatt-hours. It will be sufficient to provide 100 percent of the port’s existing electricity needs while also allowing for future growth.
“We look forward to providing carbon-free energy to The Port of Virginia and supporting its efforts to become the first carbon neutral port on the U.S. East Coast by 2040,” said Robert M. Blue, Dominion Energy’s chair, president and CEO.
Dominion is also a leader in the Atlantic offshore wind space, and its Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project is among the most ambitious in the budding sector. Blue noted that the Port of Virginia will play a role in supporting the installation and operations of new projects like CVOW.
The new agreement means that the port is running nearly 10 years ahead of schedule on its green power supply plan, a component of its long-running electrification and decarbonization strategy.
“Almost five years ago, we began to electrify our operation, audit carbon emissions, replace aging equipment with greener machines and make greater use of technology,” Virginia Port Authority CEO Stephen A. Edwards said. “As a result, more than one-third of the equipment we use on terminal today is electric and our use of technology is driving efficiency. This is a start that we’re proud of, but we know we can do better and this announcement is an important step forward.” The Port of Virginia hopes to cut emissions by 65 percent by 2032 and achieve fully carbon neutral operations by 2040, ten years ahead of the Paris Climate Agreement target. The timeline ranks among the most ambitious decarbonization plans in the ports sector.
