The Tribune

BY NEIL HARTNELL

TRIBUNE Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

THE BAHAMAS was yesterday hailed as “a strong leader” in the Caribbean on the shipping industry’s transition to cleaner fuel and energy sources, with Nassau Cruise Port’s top executive yesterday asserting this nation will be “clearly ahead” of all rivals by 2027.

Michael Maura told Tribune Business that the Government’s energy reforms and climate change policies have “laid the foundation” for The Bahamas to lead the region in switching to greener fuel and cleaner on-shore power sources “without a nickel” of taxpayer monies having to be spent due to the enabling climate for private sector investment.

He identified, in particular, the Island Power Producers project on Arawak Cay that is constructing a 70 mega watt (MW) power plant to supply liquefied natural gas (LNG) fuelled electricity to ships docked at Nassau Cruise Port as a facility that can further accelerate The Bahamas’ transition by also providing shore power to vessels at Nassau Container Port, the island’s main commercial shipping location,

This possibility was outlined by a just-released report from the Trinidad-based consultancy, Kenesjay Green, conducted on behalf of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Caribbean Shipping Association (CSA), which ranked The Bahamas as being among the “most advanced” Caribbean nations in efforts to reduce the shipping industry’s climate change impact through providing ‘green fuel bunkering’ and clean ‘shore side power’ to docked vessels.

The study, which has been seen by Tribune Business, named The Bahamas as a leader alongside Barbados when it came to possessing the necessary laws, regulations and policies for reducing the shipping industry’s carbon emissions, as well as “emerging readiness” in the adoption of cleaner shore power through the Island Power Producers project.

And the report also identified The Bahamas’ “enabling legislation and a mature conventional bunkering sector” as providing the building blocks for supplying cleaner “green fuels” to shipping traffic although the necessary port infrastructure is not yet in place to permit this. All other Caribbean states also lack the required port systems, with this nation again ranked among the most ready in this area alongside Jamaica and Trinidad & Tobago.

“From a legislative, regulatory and policy standpoint, Barbados and The Bahamas are identified as the most advanced with aligned climate, energy and maritime frameworks. Barbados is the only country with binding port-specific cold-ironing regulations, while The Bahamas benefits from strong national climate and energy legislation and a mature bunkering sector,” the Kenesjay Green study said.

“Shore side power readiness across the region remains low overall, with no berth-level infrastructure installed at any assessed port. Common constraints include the absence of ship-to-shore electrical interfaces, unassessed or insufficient distribution-level grid capacity, high capital costs relative to uncertain vessel demand and limited co-ordination between ports and national utilities.

“Emerging readiness is observed only in Barbados and The Bahamas. Barbados has enacted binding cold-ironing regulations and strong port governance frameworks, but grid capacity and electricity cost constraints limit near-term feasibility. The Bahamas benefits from national energy reforms and planned LNG-based power generation adjacent to port areas, creating a credible medium-term pathway for shore side power, though port level execution is not yet in place.”

The Kenesjay Green report highlighted, in particular, highlighted the potential additional benefits that could flow from the $180m Island Power Producers development, which will supply LNG fuelled electricity via an underwater cable linking its Arawak Cay power plant to the Nassau Cruise Port and the ships berthed there on a daily basis. This is designed to reduce the cruise industry’s carbon emissions, and global warming/climate change impact, when running engines and generators in-port.

“At Arawak Cay, adjacent to Nassau Container Port, new energy infrastructure is under development, including LNG-based power generation intended primarily to serve cruise operations and the national grid. While not currently integrated into Nassau Container Port operations, this infrastructure represents a potential enabling asset for future port electrification initiatives,” the report asserted.

“While there are no confirmed plans for shore-side electricity or green fuel bunkering infrastructure at Nassau Container Port, the proximity of new power assets and the country’s broader energy transition agenda create a credible pathway for future consideration of port electrification. Any such developments are expected to be phased and aligned with national energy planning, port modernisation priorities and evolving international shipping requirements.”

Mr Maura, who chairs Nassau Container Port’s BISX-listed owner, Arawak Port Development Company (APD), as well as heading the Nassau Cruise Port, yesterday told this newspaper that the proximity of the Island Power Producers’ plant does potentially pave the way for the latter to in future supply LNG-fuelled energy to New Providence’s sole international cargo port.

“The focus on onshore power supply (the report’s shore-side power supply), and installing a power plant at Arawak Cay, does support the electrification of the equipment that operates the port - the re-stackers, cranes, strands or top picks,” he said. “The investment happening today creates a platform for the Nassau Container Port, as equipment comes to retirement age, for that equipment to transfer to electricity. That’s a big plus as well.”

Mr Maura said the Davis administration’s combined focus on energy reform and combating climate change, plus transitioning to cleaner LNG from ‘dirtier’ fuel sources such as heavy fuel oil (HFO) and diesel, have combined with the International Maritime Organisation’s (IMO) drive to reduce the shipping industry’s carbon footprint to create a fertile environment for the private sector “to step up” and invest in potential solutions.

Suggesting that the Kenesjay Green study should have gone beyond focusing on Nassau Container Port, given the cruise industry’s scale and importance to The Bahamas, Mr Maura added: “From a mega watt demand perspective, for us, given the large volume of cruise traffic, I don’t have the data but I’d be willing to bet that there will be more demand from cruise than cargo.”

He said that investing in the provision of shore power in Nassau, via Island Power Producers, will - by extension - make The Bahamas and all its ports of call more attractive if the cruise industry can reduce its carbon emissions and footprint when docked in the capital.

“It’s the future of being able to enable our cruise partners to enjoy The Bahamas, move through The Bahamas and calk on our Bahamas and, in so doing, minimise their carbon footprint while calling on The Bahamas,” Mr Maura said. “We are seeing investments in LNG terminals and bunkering in-country, which makes our country more attractive for vessels calling into port for cargo, transshipment, and vessels that call to bring visitors.

“The Bahamas is a strong leader. I think we will be a great case study. If they had written this report a year later, I don’t think we’d be side by side with another country. We’ll be clearly ahead… I think The Bahamas, for the foreseeable future, will be in strong demand by the cargo sector and cruise sector. In my opinion, we’re already ahead. I think we have more vessel traffic than most, when you lump cruise and cargo together.

“What BPL is experiencing today, in my opinion, that reinforces the Government’s energy policies and efforts to modernise energy infrastructure,” Mr Maura added. “It’s most definitely unfortunate that BPL is going through what it’s going through but, if anything, it’s good that it’s happened at a time when the Government is transitioning to modern infrastructure and they haven’t been caught on the back foot. We are moving forward.

“I would say we are at the forefront. Very few countries in the region face the challenges we face given the number of islands that the Government is working to advance simultaneously. It’s not as simple as fixing Nassau or improving Freeport. It’s bringing the country along.”

However, the Kenesjay Green study found: “There are currently no port-specific regulations mandating shore-side electricity or green fuel bunkering at Nassau Container Port. Regulatory oversight related to port electrification and alternative fuels remains indirect, embedded within broader energy and environmental policy frameworks rather than explicit maritime or port regulations….

“At present, Nassau Container Port has no operational shore-side power infrastructure and no dedicated green fuel bunkering facilities. Vessels calling at the port rely on onboard auxiliary engines while at berth, and fuel supply is limited to conventional marine fuels provided through third-party arrangements elsewhere in the port system.

“While The Bahamas possesses strong enabling conditions at the national policy and energy system level, port-level implementation of shore-side energy and green fuel bunkering remains at an early stage. Overall, The Bahamas exhibits emerging readiness for maritime decarbonisation, with stronger foundations for future development than many regional peers, but with no immediate operational capability for shore power or green fuel bunkering at the assessed port.”

Still, the study praised The Bahamas for possessing “one of the most coherent policy and legislative frameworks” among Caribbean states thanks to “strong national climate, energy and carbon market legislation provide a solid enabling environment for future maritime decarbonisation”.

It added: “Nassau Cruise Port is currently a non-shore-side power port with no shore connection infrastructure and no near-term implementation plan. However, The Bahamas has a notable enabling factor in the form of the planned LNG-based power plant at Arawak Cay, including ship-to-shore electrification capability for cruise operations and grid interconnection.

“Accordingly, shore-side power at Nassau Container Port is best characterised as a medium-term opportunity that could become technically attractive once the adjacent power asset is operational and once berth-level electrical upgrades, standards alignment and commercial arrangements are defined.”