The Port of Long Beach is moving ahead with a $16.8 million project to build infrastructure to support electric-powered, zero-emissions cargo-handling equipment, and to demonstrate the world’s first heavy-duty, off-road, direct current fast-charging system in a seaport environment, the company said in its press release.
Funded in part by an $8 million California Energy Commission grant, the Port Advanced Vehicle Electrification (PAVE) Project supports the first phase of a transition to a zero-emissions future at Total Terminals International’s container terminal at Pier T, the Port’s largest.
The PAVE Project will design and build charging outlets for almost 40 pieces of electrical terminal equipment at TTI. Four battery-electric yard tractors will be modified to connect to a DC fast-charging system. If the system is proven viable, it could eliminate the need for on-board equipment chargers and potentially increase battery capacity of electric vehicles. Other objectives of the project include learning about the electrical grid impacts associated with widespread deployment of electric vehicles and equipment, and developing a portwide Dynamic Energy Forecasting Tool to predict how much energy and supporting infrastructure seaports will need to support zero-emissions terminal equipment.
The demonstration is expected to begin early in 2021 and the project is scheduled to be completed by March 2022.