This piece was originally published in the May/June 2019 issue of electroindustry.

Steve Griffith, Industry Director, NEMA

The Port of Long Beach is the second-busiest container port in the United States. It acts as a major gateway for U.S.–Asian trade, occupying approximately 3,500 acres of land and 4,600 acres of water in the city of Long Beach, Calif. Each year, the port handles more than 7.5 million 20-foot container units with cargo valued at $194 billion.¹

Photos courtesy of Port of Long  Beach

The port is often at the epicenter of electrification discussions in the U.S. In 2017, the Clean Air Action Plan Update² set the port on the path to moving goods using zero emissions by 2035. After receiving $80 million in grant funding, the port is moving ahead with six projects to demonstrate the zero-emissions equipment and advanced energy systems in its operations, including:

• the demonstration and deployment of zero-emissions terminal equipment featuring nine electric rubber- tire gantry cranes, 12-yard tractors, and four hybrid and electric drayage trucks;
• a sustainable transformation of the port’s terminal with 34 pieces of zero-emissions cargo-handling equipment, two of the cleanest container ships to call on the West Coast, an electric-drive tugboat, five electric trucks at an off-dock container yard, and two heavy-duty truck charging outlets;
• the design and installation of electric charging infrastructure such as conduit, wires, transformers, and switchgear;
• a microgrid at the port’s Command and Control Center;
• a demonstration of five zero-emissions cargo- handling vehicles, including three never-before- tested battery-electric top handlers and a head-to- head comparison of a hydrogen fuel truck and a battery-electric yard truck; and
• a blueprint to electric vehicles within the port

Read more about the port’s path to zero emissions at http://www.polb.com/environment/air/ zeroemissionsgrants.asp. ei

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¹ Port of Long Beach Facts at a Glance, polb.com/about/facts.asp

² Port of Long Beach Clear Air Action Plan, cleanairactionplan.org/about-the-plan