Seward, Anchorage to Get $47.6M in Federal Grants for Port-Related Energy

“The city of Seward, Alaska, is ecstatic about receiving the Clean Ports grant for the electrification of the Port of Seward,” says Seward City Manager Kat Sorensen. “Seward is surrounded by wildlife, glaciers, and magnificent landscapes and, because of that, we see continuous visitation from tourists in the summer months. By providing the cruise ships that arrive in Seward shore power, they’ll be able to turn off their diesel engines and reduce fuel consumption and related emissions.”

“This announcement is big for Seward, and for Alaska,” says Senator Lisa Murkowski. “The EPA’s grant will reduce emissions, noise, and fuel consumption for vessels in the Port of Seward while bolstering grid stability, lowering energy costs, and promoting community workforce development. I’m proud to have worked with local officials and stakeholders to facilitate these transformative resources for a great project that will deliver benefits for years to come.”

“Energy funding for Alaska is always good news,” says Representative Mary Peltola. “The Don Young Port of Alaska and Port of Seward are two gateways to Southcentral—investing in their growth will create good-paying union jobs and shore up our supply chain.”

Two Grants of Fifty-Five Awarded

“Alaska’s ports are vital to supporting jobs and communities across the state,” says EPA Regional Administrator Casey Sixkiller. “This funding, made possible by the Inflation Reduction Act, will supercharge efforts to electrify port operations and cleaner, zero-emissions solutions that benefit air quality, surrounding port communities, and help advance our collective efforts to tackle the climate crisis.”

In February 2024, EPA announced two separate funding opportunities for US ports—a Zero-Emission Technology Deployment Competition to directly fund zero-emission equipment and infrastructure to reduce mobile source emissions and a Climate and Air Quality Planning Competition to fund climate and air quality planning activities. The competitions closed in May 2024 with more than $8 billion in requests from applicants across the country seeking to advance next-generation clean technologies at US ports.

EPA selected fifty-five applications to receive grants. According to the EPA, the funds announced this week will improve air quality at ports across the country by installing clean, zero-emission freight and ferry technologies along with associated infrastructure, eliminating more than 3 million metric tons of carbon pollution, equivalent to 391,220 homes’ energy use for one year.