---

The Port of Rotterdam and Stena Line plan to install shoreconnected power at the Hook of Holland terminal, which will mean ships calling there will no longer have to depend on their own diesel engines for electricity.

Plug-in shoreside power, also known as "cold-ironing," allows ships to shut down their auxiliary engines while the ship is docked, for a 100 percent reduction of air pollution at berth. Without shoreside electricity, vessels would use their own diesel-powered auxiliary engines to power refrigerated containers, pumps, lighting, air conditioning and computers while at dock.

Earlier this month Pim de Lange, director of Stena Line, and Hans Smits, Port of Rotterdam Authority CEO, signed a declaration of intent. The installation of shoreconnected power at the Hook of Holland terminal will carry a price tag of around €5 million. Modifying the ferries will cost in the region of €0.75 million per ship.

In the declaration of intent, both parties agree that they will have filled in all the legal and financial terms and conditions by March 2009 at the latest, so that installation work can commence.

Commenting on the project, the Port of Rotterdam said in a statement "This means that maritime shipping in the Netherlands will get its first shore-based power connection. The initiative is in line with the ambition of both the Port Authority and Stena Line to create a sustainable port."

Stena Line is one of the largest ferry companies in the world. With a fleet of 35 vessels, the company provides ferry services in Scotland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, England, Wales, Ireland, Germany, Netherlands and Poland.