$46M grant for planned Seward cruise port will allow ships to cut emissions while docked

The City of Seward has won a $46 million federal grant to deliver electricity to cruise ships at a new port being built in the town along Resurrection Bay.

The system will allow cruise ships to cut off their diesel generators in port, greatly reducing greenhouse gas emissions, a state official said.

The Environmental Protection Agency grant will enable the new port to tie into the local power grid. It will also support related upgrades, like the installation of a battery storage system to help efficiently deploy power.

“The Port of Seward’s shore power project will place Seward among the forefront of sustainable ports in North America,” Seward Mayor Sue McClure said in a prepared statement from the city Tuesday. “By reducing reliance on diesel generators, we are not only cutting emissions but also enhancing the resilience of our local electric grid.”

The new electrical system will support the $137 million port in Seward. Plans for the new facility include a 68,000-square-foot terminal building, and a 750-foot, two-berth floating dock that will be the largest floating pier in the state.

The port is expected to open in May 2026, in time for that summer’s cruise season. It will replace the Alaska Railroad’s passenger dock that officials have said is reaching the end of its life. The Alaska Railroad will purchase the new dock once it’s built.

The federal grant will cover 90% of the total $51 million project cost for the shore power, the statement from the city said. The Seward Company, the port project developer, will provide the remaining 10% of the cost.

Most cruise ports in Alaska don’t have shoreside power, said Ben Eisenstein, cruise ship program manager for the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation.

Shoreside power for cruise ships will be an important improvement in the town of 2,600, Eisenstein said, in an interview Wednesday.

Cruise ships visiting Seward often carry more than 2,000 guests apiece, and the new port will support much larger ships, officials have said.

“It’s great because a cruise ship in Seward currently will sit there and idle (their diesel engines to provide power),” Eisenstein said. “This will take a great deal of emissions out of the air.”

The size of the grant is “remarkable” for a small community, said Mickey Richardson, a representative of The Seward Company.

“There’s no other system like it that’s been deployed specifically for cruise ships in a small, rural community,” Richardson said Wednesday. “Most small, community grids cannot afford the electrical draw a ship would require when it plugs into power.”

The integrated batteries are critical to the planned shoreside system, he said. The batteries also will allow more efficient deployment of power across Seward’s entire grid, he said.

The Alaska Vocational Technical Center in Seward will also receive funding under the grant to develop a training program to support operations and maintenance for the shore power system, including computer control systems and the battery bank, the city said in the statement.

The EPA announced the grant selection Tuesday. It’s one of dozens of grant selections funded by the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act and approved under a program designed to reduce emissions at ports nationwide.

The Don Young Port of Alaska in Anchorage also was selected to receive $1.9 million to complete a baseline emissions inventory and develop an energy transition plan, among other steps, the EPA said in a prepared statement.

Alaska U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski said in the statement that the announcements are a big deal for Seward and the state

“I’m proud to have worked with local officials and stakeholders to facilitate these transformative resources for a great project that will deliver benefits for years to come,” she said.

Energy funding for Alaska is always good news, Alaska U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola said in the statement.

“The Don Young Port of Alaska and Port of Seward are two gateways to Southcentral — investing in their growth will create good-paying union jobs and shore up our supply chain,” she said.