Port accessFrom 2 to 5 April, the BilbOPS project to electrify the docks of the Port of Bilbao will feature in the exhibition of Connecting Europe Days 2024, an event organised by the European Commission to discuss the creation of a sustainable, smart and resilient transport and mobility network in Europe.
More specifically, this initiative of the Port Authority of Bilbao to deploy OPS technology in its docks with a regular flow of traffic will form part of an exhibition featuring 70 innovation projects supported by the EU through different funding programmes, as an example of the wide variety of proposals that the EU is facilitating and accelerating in the field of transport to progress towards the mobility of the future. The venue for the exhibition will be the The Square Convention Centre, in Brussels.
The BilbOPS project has been awarded a EUR 14.2 million grant from the European Commission through the CEF Transport 2021-2027 grant programme. Total investment for the project is projected to be EUR 78 million, and the facilities are planned to be operational in 2026. The first phase, focusing on the A-5 Dock of the Central Breakwater, was awarded in December 2023 for EUR 4.7 million, and is supported by a grant of EUR 4.3 million from the Recovery and Resilience Facility.
In addition to the works required to supply onshore power to vessels during their stay in port, thereby reducing fuel consumption, greenhouse gas emissions and minimising noise and vibration levels, BilbOPS also provides for 100% of the power supplied to be of renewable origin. The goal is that by 2028, 50% of the power consumed will be produced in the port itself on a self-consumption basis. To this end, the Port Authority will take measures to set up and deploy new and
sustainable forms of power production, mostly through wind and solar energy, starting with the installation of PV plants on port facilities as part of this project.
Connecting Europe Days 2024
For four days, the event will bring together in Brussels +2,500 people, including members of the European Commission and related agencies, politicians and representatives from financial institutions, industry, and stakeholders from all areas of the transport sector of EU Member States and neighbouring third countries, to discuss and share best practice on transport in Europe, with a focus on the ambitious targets set out in the EU Green Deal and the Sustainable and Smart Mobility Strategy.
This year’s event will focus on four main topics: the launch of nine new ‘European Transport Corridors’ of the trans-European transport network (TEN-T) and their extension to neighbouring third countries; resilience and adaptation measures to climate change; connectivity of the transport network with neighbouring third countries and its preparedness to establish seamless trade flows; and the future of funding and financing opportunities for transport infrastructure projects.
