Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to ensure that port infrastructure has access to affordable energy for shore-side power projects.

The Government is taking action to reform the grid connections process to ensure port infrastructure, such as shore power, can access the energy they need for maritime.

In addition, the Government is currently considering policy options to accelerate connection dates for strategic demand customers, such as critical port sites, to ensure access to grid connections are not a blocker to growth and decarbonisation.

We also ran a Call for Evidence about ports’ energy needs to inform future maritime emissions policy, a summary of which will be published later this year.