IN Brief:
- DP World has launched the €53.8 million first phase of its Constanța terminal electrification programme, scheduled for completion by 31 August 2028.
- The project covers 29 container blocks, ten electric terminal tractors, nine 2,000 kVA transformers and two shore power installations.
- Funding includes an EU grant of up to €19.7 million, an EBRD loan of up to €25 million and a contribution from the terminal operator.
DP World has launched a €53.8 million electrification project at its Constanța South Container Terminal in Romania, introducing the infrastructure required for electric cargo handling equipment and shore power connections at the Black Sea port.
The investment, announced on 12 October 2026, covers electrical distribution infrastructure across 29 container blocks, charging facilities and ten electric terminal tractors, together with two systems that will allow compatible vessels to use electricity supplied from the shore while alongside. Constanța South Container Terminal SRL expects to complete the programme by 31 August 2028.
The project is being co-financed through a European Union grant of up to €19.7 million under the Connecting Europe Facility, a loan of up to €25 million from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, and a contribution from the terminal operator. The grant is administered through the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency.
Electrical infrastructure for future rubber-tyred gantry cranes forms a substantial part of the installation. DP World plans to equip 29 container storage blocks with approximately six kilometres of busbar conductors, providing a fixed electrical supply along the areas where the cranes will operate.
Rubber-tyred gantry cranes move containers between stacking positions and terminal vehicles. Although they can travel within the container yard, supplying them from a fixed electrical network requires suitable conductors and connections along their working routes. The planned busbar installation will establish that supply infrastructure before the terminal introduces the next generation of electric cranes.
The electrical distribution project includes three substations, each equipped with three transformers rated at 2,000 kVA. Their role will be to provide the appropriate voltage and distribution arrangements for the new equipment, although the combined transformer rating does not indicate how much electricity the terminal will consume continuously during operation.
A separate charging hub will support the first ten electric terminal tractors. The hub will contain ten charging points and a dedicated transformer substation, allowing the vehicles to be charged within the terminal’s operating area. DP World awarded the tractor supply contract to Kalmar Austria in May 2026, with delivery and commissioning scheduled by May 2027.
Terminal tractors carry containers on trailers between the quay, storage areas and other facilities within the port. Their relatively defined working environment allows charging infrastructure to be located around established operating patterns, although charging requirements must still be coordinated with vehicle utilisation and the terminal’s handling schedule.
The shift from diesel to electric vehicles also changes the maintenance and energy arrangements supporting horizontal container transport. Electric tractors require suitable charging connections, electrical protection and battery management, while the terminal must retain sufficient vehicle availability to serve quay cranes and yard operations during charging periods.
Shore power represents a separate component of the project because it serves vessels rather than terminal equipment. DP World plans to install two transformers rated at 5 MVA and two onshore power supply systems, sometimes referred to as cold ironing, to allow compatible ships to draw electricity from the port while berthed.
Vessels normally use auxiliary generators to supply onboard systems during port calls, including lighting, ventilation and other electrical services. A shore connection can replace much of that generation while the ship is alongside, provided the electrical interface, capacity and operating procedures are compatible with the vessel’s equipment.
DP World says the planned systems will use electricity from renewable sources. The benefit will depend on the vessels capable of connecting and the proportion of time they use the installation. The announcement does not specify how many ship calls are expected to use shore power once the project is complete.
The simultaneous introduction of electric cranes, charging facilities and shore power will increase the importance of electrical capacity across the terminal. Vessel connections and cargo handling equipment may draw power during overlapping periods, making the design of substations, distribution systems and the connection to the wider port network an integral part of the investment.
The €53.8 million project is the first component of a wider €100 million electrification programme previously outlined by DP World and the EBRD. A second component, valued at €46.2 million, is intended to introduce electrically powered, remotely operated rubber-tyred gantry cranes, two electric mobile harbour cranes and additional electric terminal tractors.
These later equipment purchases are distinct from the infrastructure being installed under the first component. The October announcement does not establish that the future cranes have been delivered or commissioned, and the completed infrastructure will need to be matched with equipment entering service as the programme develops.
DP World expects the wider electrification programme to reduce carbon dioxide emissions by more than 6,000 tonnes annually. That figure is a projection associated with the programme announced in July, rather than a measured reduction already achieved at Constanța.
The investment follows other developments at the port, including the opening of project cargo and roll-on/roll-off facilities in 2024 and completion of a 119,000 sq m multimodal platform in December 2025. Together, these facilities support the movement of containers and other freight between the Black Sea and inland markets in Romania and neighbouring countries.
With the financing arrangements previously established, the October launch provides the implementation timetable for the first phase of electrification. Delivery of the initial electric tractors in 2027 and completion of the electrical infrastructure by August 2028 will be the next identifiable milestones before the wider equipment replacement programme can deliver its projected operating benefits.
