Yusen Terminals’ McCorkle says zero emission transition is expensive but will result in long-term savings

The cost of marine terminals transitioning from diesel-powered equipment to zero emission batteries and hydrogen power is expensive but will result in long-term savings in maintenance and repair costs, according to Alan McCorkle, President and CEO of Yusen Terminals, based at the Port of Los Angeles.

In an interview with AJOT, McCorkle provided a very detailed breakdown of the challenges facing a marine terminal transitioning from diesel to zero emissions but concluded that the transition would eventually save terminals money: “because you have an internal combustion engine, you've got moving parts and you won't have to have all of those parts if you're going over to electric or hydrogen … the maintenance cost will be cheaper versus diesel.”

Challenges to Transition

At the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, the goal is to transition all cargo-handling equipment to zero emissions by 2030, but McCorkle said there are a number of challenges that terminals face outside of their control:

1. “We're dependent on the OEM market (equipment manufacturers) and where they go. … Our goal is to be there in 2030 … but we don't know … how quick … production of some of these test units will turn into production because we're in test mode. Now it's 2024, almost halfway through it, which is shocking me … Some of these EV guys fall off. Maybe … some stay in there, … but … we have multiple terminal operators with a lot of equipment … we are all chasing the same thing. So, our goal is to be there by 2030 … but it's going to be the partnering with the OEMs and as technology evolves on what they can deliver.”
2. The second challenge is obtaining sufficient electrical power from the utilities. The Port of Los Angeles utility provider is Los Angeles Department of Water and Power: “Point two is the supply of power whether you're using electric or hydrogen, how that evolves … At LADWP … they're somewhere … around like eight years now is their estimate to supply electricity … if everyone went electric …”
3. The third challenge is inadequate supply of affordable hydrogen and regulatory limits on fueling: “The hydrogen is in real infancy stages. And at the Port of Los Angeles, we had to get a permit through the Fire Department. We can only fuel … in the morning hours of 0300 to 0700 hours. And it's with a mobile truck, but as … hydrogen fleets increase? Then how does that fueling of these hydrogen pieces of equipment evolve?”
4. Vehicle and equipment charging is not standardized:” Now you have multiple … companies popping up out the woodwork … everything from plugin to drive... the stuff you can drive over, and they say: ‘we can put things in your yard that you drive over.’ They're constantly charging … where you park it (or)... on a pad… you have these different charging solutions that are being developed and people are knocking on your door saying: “Hey, I got the best charging solution either developed or being developed. And they get ... everything from plug in plug out to charge … So, am I worried about it? Yeah. But it depends on how the charging solutions evolve.”
5. Grandfathering diesel equipment that is relatively new: “By 2030, I just can't park my diesel, even if I had… all the best intentions to replace it [because] either the OEMs couldn't keep up with the demand or the… utilities couldn't keep up with the supply of electricity…I think this is going to be the case. So, if you have... a diesel that you bought by a certain time, we will need to grandfather it for some period of time.”

The result, McCorkle says, is that “we have more questions than answers, but 2030 is our goal.”

New Battery-Powered Top Handlers

On June 25^th McCorkle, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Eugene Seroka jointly announced that Yusen was deploying the first battery powered container top handlers to replace diesel powered machines at the Port of Los Angeles.

McCorkle told the audience: “Yusen Terminals is proud of our partnership with Taylor Machine Works resulting in these first five commercially available EV top handlers being put into production at our Port of Los Angeles facility ... It is a major first step in our journey to zero emissions.”

A Port of Los Angeles news release noted: “Typically diesel-powered, top handlers are off-road vehicles with an overhead boom for loading containers weighing up to 75,000 pounds onto trucks and trains, unloading them, and stacking them on terminals between pickups and deliveries.

The new Taylor ZLC 996 top handlers will be powered by a 650V all-electric battery power drivetrain, capable of running two-full shifts under normal work cycles, then ready-to-go after a five-hour boost using a 180W recharger.

There are currently 215 diesel top handlers used throughout the Port of Los Angeles, which account for about 30% of all emissions from cargo-handling equipment in operation at the Port’s terminals. Promoting the commercial use of ZE (zero emission) top handlers is one of many strategies underway at the Port to boost the market for new emission-free technologies. Toward that goal, last month the Port applied to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for a $412 million grant to support deployment of 424 pieces of ZE cargo handling equipment, 250 ZE drayage trucks, and $50 million for community ZE initiatives."