VICTORIA GROUP
Buoyant Port Business Investing in Transition
PRODUCTION: David Hill
The Victoria Group is investing in electrification, hydrogen power, sustainability, and circularity.
As big-name customers put out the call for emissions reductions through their supply chains, this is a group that can answer. Director Steve Marshall talks to Energy Focus about an exciting time for this historic organisation.
//With six strategic ports positioned across the UK, the Victoria Group is an operation of national importance. Through its gateways arrive critical materials to keep industry running. Exiting its harbours go Great British exports for markets all over the world. The Port of Seaham, Mersey Wharf, Port of Boston, Sharpness Dock, Corporation Wharf, and Victoria Wharf are engines of economic activity for the country.
But as the energy transition continues, and environmental targets edge ever closer, those moving through Victoria Group’s territory are asking for new and different. Customers want cleaner, greener, more efficient. They demand that the company does its bit to reduce environmental challenges as part of a much wider ecosystem.
“We have the understanding and responsibility, and we demonstrate to our customers
that we are taking this seriously,” stresses Director, Steve Marshall
To bring improvement and enhancement to the group – in line with the needs of the industry – Marshall is driving a new campaign labelled ‘Future Facing’. This project is more than a single investment or a baseless boast.
“Our customers are demanding more from us and we certainly want to deliver,” says Marshall, a versatile industry leader with extensive
INDUSTRY FOCUS: INFRASTRUCTURE
experience in senior management for the Royal Navy. “Environmentally, we absolutely do not want to be behind the curve because we know that will come with a bigger financial burden.”
The relatively small familyowned company has already started making an impact, and Future Facing has delivered impressive results.
FUTURE FACING
The campaign is focused on environmental improvements that benefit the organisation and its efficiencies. From electrification to modernisation of equipment to emissions reduction, Future Facing impacts the entire Victoria Group.
Marshall says the group had to understand its current position and map where it wanted to get to. Working alongside customers, industry bodies,
and local government the Victoria Group quickly devised a strategy that would provide maximum impact.
“We have been working really hard and investing heavily in solar, across every port,” explains Marshall. “That hasn’t happened overnight. The different arrays total around 740kw of power over five sites. And we are transmitting any surplus generated green energy back to the grid.”
This investment has helped reduce Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions across operations, and the group has a number of other initiatives that feed into this goal. New transportation solutions, new crane power, efficiency investments, and investments into electrification and sustainability are also part of the Future Facing project.
Across its fleet of haulage trucks, the company has invested in new Euro
VI diesel engines, vastly improving on the traditional diesel offering. Loaders have been fitted with mini hydrogen plants to remove NOX emissions by >60% and particulate soot by >90%.
Fishing vessels have also been tasked with ‘fishing for litter’ collecting litter and ghost nets from around the fishing grounds and harbour, with Victoria Group organising safe and responsible disposal. New low emissions cranes have also been installed in a significant investment, desktop PCs have been replaced with laptops, all Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) monitors have been removed, and all lighting will soon be LED. At the same time, the company has put in place smart monitoring to keep careful track of energy consumption.
“All of the ports we operate
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Industrial & Commercial Residential Roofing
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5 Premier League Football Grounds
Power Stations
Tungsten Mines
Various Industrial Buildings
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INDUSTRY FOCUS: INFRASTRUCTURE
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in have seen vast investment in their handling equipment, this has revolutionised our ability and energy footprint,” says Marshall. “Liebherr are forward thinking with their reduced emissions. We now have one crane that can do the job of two older cranes delivering higher efficiency. We save more than 50% of the fuel and these cranes are much more efficient.”
Longer-term, the plan is for widespread electrification of the
quays across all ports to allow for charging of vessels as Scope 3 emissions are addressed.
“Electric cranes are still not yet feasible and we expect these new cranes to be used for around 15 years while we continue with wider electrification projects,” Marshall admits. “We are also looking at battery storage which is challenging because of the life and price of the battery.”
Currently, a feasibility study is underway to chart the course for full electrification. “We are looking at Scope
All hands on deck: Victoria Group and Inspired PLC
3 specifically. We want to give vessels the ability to plug in,” confirms Marshall.
“The environmental benefit remains high for us and we are engaging with Net Zero Marine to understand how we best go about that. But this could address Scope 3 for us.”
‘WE ARE SPENDING’
To ensure long-term sustainability and security as a leading supply chain provider and port operator, Victoria Group regularly invests in infrastructure, beyond the Future Facing campaign,
A leading supply chain provider with six port facilities across the UK, the Victoria Group is an operation of national importance and a key partner to countless organisations.
As a result, the port operator is also at the forefront to exceed evolving expectations as energy transition continues and organisations examine their supply chains as part of their decarbonisation ambitions.
Enter Inspired PLC. The UK’s leading commercial energy and sustainability advisor was invited to offer Victoria Group suggestions of energy saving measures with a carbon reduction benefit.
After a thorough estate-wide review, Inspired’s Technical Services team suggested a Solar PV solution for five sites spread across the UK. The five arrays totalled 770kWp and would generate between 15% and 35% of each site’s annual import volume.
Liam Reed, Director of Technical Services at Inspired PLC, commented: “Helping continuously operating ports to harness the full benefits of a solar power solution was an interesting challenge for the team from the outset.
“Each system was designed to optimise the volume of solar power utilised on site, providing the best financial return for any exported power.”
As part of this process, DNO connection agreements were submitted and structural surveys undertaken. System sizes and configurations were then reviewed considering DNO restrictions, and the systems re-optimised.
Delivering a solar project under the working conditions of a live sea port could have been far from plain sailing. Therefore, installation programmes were carefully crafted around material lead times and busy port operations.
However, despite challenging weather and site conditions, the Inspired team commissioned the projects on time.
This was not the end, however. Since commissioning the Inspired team has been monitoring array performance online to ensure optimal generation.
Steve Marshall, Director of Victoria Group, commented: “The Group is showcasing its drive toward decarbonisation, ‘Future Facing’, a campaign focused on wider environmental improvements and efficiencies and Solar PV forms part of that course to net zero.
“We are proud of our investment and involvement with Inspired to support green, renewable energy to our sites, this investment has helped reduce Scope 2 emissions across all our operations.”
Liam added: “A solar solution can play a powerful role in an organisation’s decarbonisation ambitions. When this organisation is a supply chain partner, the impact carries a further ripple effect.
“We look forward to continuing to support the Victoria Group as they strive to be a greener link in the chain for the benefit of their partners.”
VICTORIA GROUP
to ensure the smooth and efficient flow of goods through its gateways.
“The solar project has been large and expensive,” admits Marshall. “One of our largest arrays is in the Port of Boston, but also at that port there is a flood defence scheme which is ongoing. The goal at completion is for Boston to not flood for 100 years.”
This project will help to protect 14,000 properties as well as the harbour area and all of its assets. A multi firm development sees improvements to existing infrastructure including a 300 tonne, 25m-wide rising sector gate and miles of steel sheet piles to reinforce river embankments. In 2013, Boston was flooded causing major stress, damage, and impact on life and business.
At Seaham Harbour, inner dock gates are currently being upgraded, and the outer dock gates are planned for
upgrade next year. Currently, Victoria Group is vital in the supply chain for a number of big-name manufacturers. “We handle bulk including itemised dry bulk, break bulk etc. It differs in every port. And that is why our facilities must be top class,” says Marshall.
“Across all of these projects we are spending millions of pounds,” he explains, adding that over the past few years 50% of outgoing product at Boston have been moved from road to rail to make further emissions savings and improve in-transit times for customers.
Despite the history and heritage that is soaked into the sites within the Victoria Group, there is a clear and obvious willingness to look forward, changing and adapting at all times to improve for the benefit of customers. Becoming greener and
cleaner, and putting sustainability at the bow of all decision making, allows Victoria Group to fly its flag high.
“We must be environmentally attractive to our customers,” concludes Marshall. “We have vast competition and our customers are striving for a greener and better future. Our emissions are ours, but we know we fit into shipping Scope 1. We know our part, and we now know how we can contribute. We continue to do that effectively and that will not change.”
The more our customers ask for change, the more Victoria Group will explore. Marshall is confident, and the group remains buoyant in difficult times.
