Section 1 General
Clasification Society 2024 - Version 9.40
Clasifications Register Rules and Regulations - Rules and Regulations for the Classification of Ships, July 2022 - Part 7 Other Ship Types and Systems - Chapter 13 On-shore Power Supplies - Section 1 General

Section 1 General

1.1 General

1.1.1 These optional requirements apply to the safety, reliability and availability of shipboard machinery, electrical and control engineering arrangements installed to permit continued operation of services by connection to an external electrical power supply in port. These requirements are additional to those applicable in other Parts of the Rules. Regular operation of ship's services from an external electrical power supply is often referred to as On-shore Power Supply, Cold Ironing, High Voltage Shore Connection or Alternative Marine Power.

1.1.2 These requirements are intended for application to the shipboard elements of designs where the connection(s) with external power supply arrangements are achieved by either extending ship cables from the ship to the external power supply connection points or by bringing external cables on board to connect to shipboard connection points. However, external equipment and machinery (including shore based transformers, circuit breakers, gantries, cables, connectors and control engineering arrangements) are not covered by classification or these requirements.

1.1.3 Compliance with these requirements is intended to assess the suitability of shipboard arrangements for the documented intended application and only addresses compatibility with external power supply arrangements that are suitable for connection to the installed ship arrangements.

1.1.4 Assessment of the overall compatibility and suitability of an external electrical power supply (including combined electrical and control engineering assessments, compliance with applicable regulations, operating practices and risk assessment, etc. as applicable) is necessary before connection and is the responsibility of the Owner. Elements of the overall assessment of compatibility will be required to be completed in advance to prepare for a ship visit to a port where it is intended to connect to an external power supply due to the need to involve competent and responsible parties.

1.2 Authorities and administrations

1.2.1 Additional requirements and/or restrictions may be imposed by the National Authority with which the ship is registered and/or by the appropriate Administration or Authorities within whose jurisdiction the ship is intended to operate and/or by the Owners or Authorities responsible for an external electrical power supply. Where such additional requirements are relevant, compliance is the responsibility of the Owner. If specifically requested, Clasifications Register (hereinafter referred to as ‘LR’) may be able to provide a suitable statement of compliance.

1.2.2 Where additional requirements imposed by an Authority or Administration would result in a departure from the requirements of this Chapter, details demonstrating that safety, availability and reliability will not be adversely affected are to be submitted to LR for consideration.

1.3 Class notations

1.3.1  OPS machinery class notation may be assigned where machinery, electrical and control engineering arrangements installed onboard to permit continued operation of services by connection to an external electrical power supply are assessed and found to comply with the requirements of this Chapter.

1.4 Plans and information

1.4.1 Three copies of the plans and particulars in Pt 7, Ch 13, 1.4 Plans and information 1.4.2 to Pt 7, Ch 13, 1.4 Plans and information 1.4.9 are to be submitted for consideration.

1.4.2 Operating Manuals that describe the intended methods of connection together with operating and monitoring instructions. Assessments of the external supplies that are to be connected to the ship together with the mooring and environmental conditions are to be included. Details of equipment and arrangements necessary to ensure safety when connecting, disconnecting, transferring electrical load, testing and operating are to be incorporated.

1.4.3 A Design Statement which details the Defined Operations. This statement is to include a description of the operating capability, functionality, limits and restrictions; in terms of:

1.4.4 Arrangement plans of equipment, control stations, locations, routes to and from connections, openings and accesses and flexible or movable arrangements.

1.4.5 Operational and construction details of Connection Equipment, including any flexible or adjusting arrangements, including plugs and socket-outlets, see Pt 7, Ch 13, 3.3 Connection cables, plugs and socket-outlets 3.3.4.

1.4.6 Plans for control and electrical engineering arrangements required by Pt 6, Ch 1 Control Engineering Systems and Pt 6, Ch 2 Electrical Engineering, as applicable.

1.4.7 Details of type tests for Connection cables, plugs and socket-outlets required by Pt 7, Ch 13, 3.3 Connection cables, plugs and socket-outlets 3.3.6.

1.4.8 Details of supplementary arrangements required to protect equipment from exposure to moisture, condensation or temperatures outside their rating.

1.4.9 Schedule of testing at manufacturers’ works, initial surveys and trials. The test schedules are to address the defined operations and are to include normal operations and failure conditions.

1.5 Additions and alterations

1.5.1 When an alteration or addition to the approved arrangements is proposed, including changes to the defined service profile, details are to be submitted for consideration.

1.6 Definitions

1.6.1 ‘Defined Operations’ include the application, connection, electrical load transfer, in-service operation, failure response, disconnection and stowage of the connection to an external power supply.

1.6.2 ‘Connection Equipment’ is the ship equipment used to connect permanently installed ship equipment with external electrical power supply connection points in accordance with the Design Statement. This includes, as applicable, flexible cables, plugs and socket-outlets, slip rings or other power conductors or control connections, and support and management measures for these connections. For the purposes of this Chapter, ‘Connection Equipment’ does not include external equipment, see Pt 7, Ch 13, 1.1 General.


Copyright 2022 Clasifications Register Group Limited, International Maritime Organization, International Labour Organization or Maritime and Coastguard Agency. All rights reserved. Clasifications Register Group Limited, its affiliates and subsidiaries and their respective officers, employees or agents are, individually and collectively, referred to in this clause as 'Clasifications Register'. Clasifications Register assumes no responsibility and shall not be liable to any person for any loss, damage or expense caused by reliance on the information or advice in this document or howsoever provided, unless that person has signed a contract with the relevant Clasifications Register entity for the provision of this information or advice and in that case any responsibility or liability is exclusively on the terms and conditions set out in that contract.