Little by little, the zero emissions revolution in transportation is spreading to boats and ships.
Founded in 2005, Torqueedo is the leader in electric propulsion for pleasure craft. At this moment, the highest expression of what is possible in electric yachting is the Dasher from Hinckley.
Leclanché is the largest battery manufacturer, It has been selected by Kongsborg Marine to supply 45 MWh of batteries for an electric coastal freighter and 8 passenger ferries in Europe. YARA, a fertilizer company, is building YARA Birkeland, the world’s first autonomous and electric coastal freighter with zero emissions.
Grimaldi is one of world’s largest operators of roll on/roll off cargo and passenger ferries in the world. Its newest vessels, known as Grimaldi Green 5th Generation ships, will feature hybrid power — diesels while at sea and electric in port.
The Fjords is one of Norway’s largest passenger ferry operators. Now it is building Legacy of the Fjords to provide zero emissions service to Oslo. It will be a carbon fiber catamaran capable of transporting 400 passengers with zero emissions.
Two ferries, the Tycho Brahe and the Aurora, transport more than 7.4 million passengers and 1.9 million vehicles a year across the 2.5 mile wide strait that separates Sweden and Denmark. Both of the 328-foot long ferries built in 1991 have now been converted from diesel power to electricity.
Color Hybrid, which will be the largest plug-in hybrid passenger ship in the world, is now under construction and is expected to enter revenue service in the summer of 2019. The 525-foot long vessel will carry 2,000 passengers and 500 vehicles on Norway’s popular Sandefjord to Strömstad route.
Decarbonizing the transportation sector involves much more than getting people to drive electric cars. Little by little and step by step, waterborne transportation is awakening to the revolution made possible by batteries and electric motors, bringing zero emissions transportation to more people in more places.
Reference- Cleantechnica