On June 24, Bergen City Council (Norway) voted to change the cruise ship limit - set in 2018 of 3 vessels and 8,000 passengers per day - to 4 vessels daily for immediate implementation.
The max number of cruise passengers will remain at 8000 and must be adhered to, regardless of the vessels' number.
It will be mandatory for the 4th ship to use shore power. At present, Port Bergen is testing out a number of ships vis a vis shore power connections, according to Nils Mollerup, marketing manager Bergen Havn who said that would therefore take some time until they, without any challenges, could take in the 4th ship.
Shore power is available at 4 piers: Bontelabo, Jekteviken, Skolten North, and Skolten South. On these piers, 3 ships can be connected at the same time. Though it is not mandatory for any of the vessels on a 3-ship day to be connected, the fees are lower for those connecting.
All cruise ships calling at Bergen port should be able to connect to shore power. This is to become a mandatory requirement for all visits by 2026.
In collaboration with the cruise port, efforts are made to ensure that one of the ships is berthed at the Jekteviken Quay on days when there are 3 vessels in port. This ship must also be able to connect to the shore power.
Bergen Havn is due to introduce zero emissions to air and sea in line with the regulations for World Heritage fjords. This is being looked at by the Norwegian government at a national level.
At Bontelabo and Skolten piers is currently being built a wastewater management system for collecting blackwater (containing feces and urine) and greywater (discharges from galleys/kitchens, baths, showers, lavatory sinks, laundry). The plan is for this to be ready for use in 2022-Q4.