Savona puts its €10.1 million cruise shore power plant to the test
Cruise ships calling at Savona are close to switching off their engines at the quay. The Western Ligurian Sea Port System Authority has started ship to shore connection tests on the new €10.1 million Onshore Power Supply plant at the Palacrociere cruise terminal, the authority confirmed in the first week of November 2026. The tests are the last step before the system is commissioned for regular use.
At a glance
| Savona cruise terminal OPS | |
|---|---|
| Port | Savona, Liguria, Italy |
| Terminal | Palacrociere cruise terminal, beside the Vecchia Darsena |
| Investment | €10.1 million |
| Main contractor | Nidec ASI |
| Works | Started October 2023; plant and quay networks completed July 2026 |
| Cable handling | Mobile, self propelled Cable Management System |
| Status | Ship to shore connection tests under way, November 2026 |
| Next step | Full commissioning |
From dry runs to live connections
The test programme began with dry runs, carried out without power flowing, to check procedures and equipment. Crews then moved to physical connections between the quay and visiting ships. The construction works on the electrification system were completed on schedule.
At the centre of the set up is a mobile, self propelled Cable Management System. Rather than a fixed outlet at one point on the quay, the unit drives to the ship's connection point, lifts the high voltage cables on board and follows the vessel as it moves at berth. Savona took delivery of the unit, an AMP Mobile PowerMove of about 28 tonnes with a telescopic crane of roughly 10 metres, in December 2025. It is built to handle cables for cruise ships drawing up to 20 MVA at 11 kV.
A mobile unit gives the terminal flexibility. Cruise ships place their shore power sockets in different positions along the hull, and a moving cable system means the port does not need a separate fixed connection for every class of ship that calls.
A port grid, not just a plug
The shore power plant is one part of a wider energy programme at Savona. Alongside it, the authority has completed a new smart electrical grid for the port that combines solar power generated on site, energy storage and real time distribution. New photovoltaic systems were installed on the roofs of port warehouses, paired with battery storage, and the grid serves public users across the port area. The authority has also built a new electrical substation and the connection networks for the cruise quays.
That matters for the economics of shore power. A port that produces and stores some of its own electricity is less exposed to grid peaks when a large cruise ship plugs in, and can offer a more stable supply on busy days.
Why Savona matters
Savona is the home port of Costa Cruises, and the Palacrociere terminal sits right next to the old town and the historic Vecchia Darsena waterfront. Once the plant is in service, ships at berth can shut down their generators and run all onboard services from the grid, cutting CO₂, nitrogen oxides, fine particulates and engine noise in the heart of the city.
The same authority, which also runs Genoa, Prà and Vado Ligure, is extending electrification across its ports, with cold ironing for the Vado Ligure container terminal also in progress. In Genoa, the authority is weighing how to supply its own cold ironing network with power from a plant at the former Enel site.
The 2030 deadline
Under the EU's Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR), the main European ports must provide onshore power for large cruise ships, container ships and passenger ships by 1 January 2030. Italian ports are racing to get their systems built and tested, with La Spezia, Civitavecchia, Trieste and others at different stages. Savona's tests put it among the Italian cruise ports closest to regular service. Marseille has already shown what full operation looks like, powering three cruise ships at once.
Cruise shore power in the Mediterranean is a central theme of DTF Malta 2027.
The plant is built and the cable unit is on the quay. Next comes the first cruise call that runs on Savona's grid.
