Blount Island completes $4.5 million shore-power system for maritime prepositioning ships
A roughly $4.5 million shore-power installation at Blount Island is moving toward service after equipment testing and a final walkthrough.
At a glance
- Project cost
- Approximately US$4.5 million
- Estimated electricity cost reduction
- 20% to 30% versus onboard generation
- Slipway length
- 1,000 feet
- Some ship generator fuel use
- More than 4,000 gallons per day
- Photograph capture date
- 2026-10-14
Jacksonville, Florida — Marine Corps Support Facility Blount Island has installed and tested a roughly $4.5 million shore-power system intended to supply electricity to maritime prepositioning ships at one berth on the St. Johns River.
NAVFAC Southeast oversaw construction, which included underground cables, pier-mounted brackets, transformers, switchboards and drainage improvements. The major electrical equipment had passed testing by an October 14 final walkthrough. Engineers were scheduling operator training as they prepared to bring the system into service, although the source did not announce a commissioning date.
Military Sealift Command estimates that shore power can reduce the cost of supplying electricity to berthed ships by 20% to 30% compared with onboard generation, depending on local fuel and electricity prices. Installation planners said generators on some maritime prepositioning ships can burn more than 4,000 gallons of fuel per day. The system is designed for ships that routinely use Blount Island’s 1,000-foot slipway and may be able to support other vessels.
For infrastructure and marine-services firms, the project demonstrates a measurable operating-cost and emissions case for port electrification. This installation is substantially built and is not an open procurement; the next verified step is training and entry into service.
Featured photo: Dustin Senger/U.S. Marine Corps. Photo record and capture-date evidence.
Primary source: Blount Island Command project update.
What happens next
Engineers were scheduling training and preparing to bring the tested shore-power system into service; no commissioning date was announced.
Source for this milestone →Why it matters for the industry
The system provides a quantified cost and fuel-use case for port electrification, but this completed installation is not an open procurement.
Supporting source →Explore the project and participants
Canonical project record for the development covered in this article.
Sources & reporting
- Primary project source · 2026-10-15
- DVIDS photograph record · 2026-10-14
Sources checked 2026-11-12.