Kildn will be a unique port project
Kildn will be a unique port project. A trailblazing project to establish principles for how ports in a globalised world should be planned, built and adapted to a zero-emission future. That is an ambitious goal. It is also a vital one if we want to limit the negative impacts of climate change.
It will take time to stabilise temperatures. Even if the world manages to achieve this through the measures set out in the Paris Agreement, we will need to live with the impacts of a gradually changing climate for a long time. We must widely adopt and develop renewable energy resources in order to achieve the necessary transition from fossil fuels to zero emission sources, with low-emission technologies as an intermediate solution.
Electricity from renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power already constitutes a rapidly growing share of the world’s energy mix. That is driving Norway to explore future scenarios and projects based on renewable energy sources. Kildn shall be developed as a home port for cruise ships, fjord tourism and a fast ferry network. The port’s energy architecture is based on renewable energy sources in order to achieve our zero-emission vision. As the location for the first port project that relies primarily on renewable energy, Askøy Municipality will lead the transition that must take place at ports all over the world.
Four renewable energy sources
Being a zero-emission port project gives Kildn a unique profile. Kildn will consist of a main semi-circular building with a roof that slopes down from north to south, a north and south terminal, as well as a ferry terminal occupying the southern end of the quay. The architectural design of the buildings is more important to Kildn than to most other ports. Our ambition is to build the first zero-emission port, capable of generating, storing and using its own energy. The idea is to achieve this by balancing four different renewable energy sources in the best possible way:
1) Underground battery storage system to provide extra power for shore power. That will help to reduce the need to draw electricity from the grid on Askøy.
2) Sea water from a depth of 100 metres that will be passed through a heat exchanger and used to cool fresh water, which will be distributed around the facility to provide cooling.
3) Approximately 23,000 m2 of rooftop solar panels will cover a significant proportion of the facility’s energy consumption.
4) A seawater pumped storage power station where water is pumped up to a great height when power and energy is available, and then released through a turbine when power and energy are required. This serves the same purpose as the battery, and it will also be built underground.