Lianyungang Port’s All-Electric Tugboat Solution Wins “Oscar” in Sustainable Development Field

From: Lianyungang Daily Updated: 2025-12-06 01:52

Recently, the 2025 “Golden Keys——China Actions for SDGs” selection came to a successful conclusion. The “Comprehensive Solution for All-Electric Tugboats” independently developed by Lianyungang Port stood out among 129 outstanding initiatives across the country and was awarded the “Golden Keys Dual Carbon Pioneer Annual Best Solution”. Meanwhile, this solution was officially released at the 30th Conference of the Parties (COP30) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change held in Belém, Brazil, marking that China’s green transformation practices in ports have received high recognition from the global climate governance system.

“Golden Keys——China Actions for SDGs” is a top-tier event in China’s sustainable development field, often referred to as the “Oscar Award” in this area. It aims to identify and shape benchmark actions by Chinese enterprises for SDGs, tell and share China’s sustainable development solutions and stories and experiences, and contribute to promoting sustainable development in China and the world. Lianyungang Port won this honor thanks to its systematic breakthroughs in the field of all-electric tugboats, demonstrating the port’s solid strength and innovative commitment under the guidance of the “dual carbon” goals.

Traditional port tugboats have long relied on diesel power, resulting in high energy consumption and large emissions, making them one of the main sources of air pollution in ports. “We seized the opportunity of green port construction. From identifying the root causes of carbon emissions in traditional ports to precisely targeting the path of electrification transformation, the all-electric tugboat team analyzed pollution sources with the concept of ‘pinpointing the problem’ and constructed the optimal combination of clean energy and port operations based on the principle of ‘simplicity is the best’.” Xie Fei, Secretary of the Party Committee of the Tug and Barge Branch of Lianyungang Port Holding Group, introduced, “The project team successively overcame challenges in establishing rules and regulations, ship design, intelligent upgrades, and ship-shore coordination systems, ultimately achieving a sharp reduction in carbon emissions, a decrease in operating costs, and an improvement in the port environment.”

It is understood that this all-electric tugboat solution has successfully broken through the technical bottleneck of high emissions in traditional tugboats and stands out in terms of core safety design and comprehensive benefits. Its safety system ensures operational safety through “three-layer protection”. It is equipped with high-energy-density lithium iron phosphate batteries and adopts an independent battery compartment design to ensure a stable and reliable power supply. The battery compartments are separated from the bridge and engine room by 12-millimeter explosion-proof steel plates and maintain a safety distance of 3 meters, so a single compartment failure does not affect the overall operation. The tugboat is designed with 32,768 sensors that collect real-time data every 10 milliseconds, and an alarm is immediately triggered and the power is automatically cut off when the battery temperature exceeds 55℃. In terms of economic and environmental contributions, a single all-electric tugboat can save more than 3 million yuan in operating costs per year and reduce carbon oxide emissions by approximately 900 tons.

At the China Pavilion side event of COP30, the Lianyungang all-electric tugboat solution demonstrated to participants from various countries its innovative path of coordinated development of environmental, economic, and social benefits. In recent years, Lianyungang Port has actively explored a new development model of “port + green”. This award is not only a testament to its green innovation capabilities but also a vivid practice of China’s commitment to the “dual carbon” goals and its contribution to global climate governance. As the all-electric tugboat solution sails from Lianyungang to the world, a “New Silk Road” powered by green technology and facilitating global sustainable development is unfolding, showcasing China’s wisdom and commitment in addressing climate change to the world.