The Hutchison Ports BEST terminal of the Port of Barcelona is advancing its commitments to reduce polluting emissions with the aim of becoming one of the most sustainable container terminals in the Mediterranean.
The Barcelona port terminal already eliminated scope 2 emissions in 2022 by opting for electricity from 100% renewable energy.
Guillermo Belcastro, CEO of Hutchison Ports BEST, states that the company “is taking a leadership role in helping supply chains become more sustainable. Consumers are demanding more sustainable products and that means logistics operators must meet these needs”.
As a member of the Hutchison Ports group, BEST has been operating efficiently for more than 10 years and has managed to reduce carbon emissions by 65% ​​compared to a conventional terminal, thanks to being semi-automated and using mostly electric rail-mounted cranes.
At BEST, emissions are reduced both at the dock for ships and at the gates for trucks. The efficiency of the system allows shipping companies to minimize the time and speed before arriving at the port of Barcelona and at the end of their operations.
“The future of sustainability is already here; by reducing its emissions by 57% (following the GHG protocol), BEST is almost 10 years ahead of the objectives established by the European Union and the International Maritime Organization of 55% and 40% in 2030 respectively,” says Belcastro.
In addition, BEST has installed 1,832 solar panels on nearly half a hectare of roofs of its buildings, capable of generating 1.18 GWh of electricity, the equivalent of the annual electricity consumption of about 200 homes.
In collaboration with the Barcelona Port Authority, BEST is expected to supply electricity at its dock in 2024. This project will allow ships to connect to electricity with a guarantee of 100% origin from renewable sources and save emissions during their stay in the port. port. The ongoing expansion of the terminal’s storage area is also expected to allow 100% of reefer containers to be connected to electricity from renewable sources by the end of 2024.
Another of the group’s commitments is rail transport, which considerably reduces atmospheric emissions by removing trucks from the road. In the last 10 years, BEST has contributed to the increase in the share of local rail traffic in the Port of Barcelona, ​​which has gone from 3% to 20%. This is thanks to BEST’s own rail terminal, investment in inland intermodal terminals in northern Spain (in Zaragoza, Noain, VillafrÃa, Agoncillo and Miranda de Ebro) and the creation of the rail operator Synergy, which contributes to expanding the area of ​​influence of the Port of Barcelona.
BEST was inaugurated 10 years ago and is one of the sustainability benchmarks for the terminals of the Hutchison Ports group, which operates 52 facilities in 25 countries.
