Port of Seattle votes to require all cruise vessels to be shore power capable by 2027 season

The Port of Seattle Commission recently voted to require all cruise vessels homeported in Seattle be shore power capable and utilize shore power, starting with the 2027 season.

On average, cruise vessels at berth plugging into shore power reduces diesel emissions by 80 percent.

Cruise ships using shore power during the 2023 season prevented 2,700 metric tons of greenhouse gases and 0.75 metric tons of diesel particulate matter. This is the equivalent of nearly 650 passenger cars driving for a year.

“Ensuring all homeported cruise ships utilize shore power by incorporating a requirement in our commercial agreements, the Port continues to demonstrate how we can generate economic opportunities while minimizing our impact on communities and the climate,” Fred Felleman, Port of Seattle commissioner, said. “In passing this order, the Commission turns the Port’s 2030 goal of universal shore power use into a 2027 requirement, which is only possible due to the significant investments made by the cruise industry and the Port on both the ships and shoreside facilities. Marketing such investments should also appeal to the environmental interests of travelers who have chosen to cruise to Alaska.”

The port plans to connect cruise ships to shore power at Pier 66 this summer.

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