The future of ferries?

sly_karma

sly_karma

Crew Member
Incat shipyard in Tasmania is working on an all-electric catamaran hull vehicle ferry, commissioned by a for-profit customer in Argentina. It is believed to be both the largest EV ever built, and the largest aluminum ship ever built.

Its service run is 35 nm across the estuary of the Rio Plata between Argentina and Uruguay. Water depth is as little as 8 ft, so the ferry drivetrain uses eight jet pumps, four fixed units for forward thrust, and four direct directable for steering. Charging stations at each berth will deliver a huge 40 mW of charging current so that the ship can top off batteries during the unload/reload cycle.

Despite carrying 250 tons of batteries, the ship will weigh 200 tons less a conventional power train with diesel engines, transmissions, fuel tanks and fuel load.

12 minute video includes a walk through the hull in the shipyard and a conversation with the owner of Incat.

 
40mw charging capacity is crazy. He was a bit light on charging details, but presumably they are recharging the battery at every 45min docking cycle. Imagine the kind of electrical grid needed to support this so you don't brownout the entire grid. The on-shore infrastructure that would be needed to make this possible is just as interesting - lets hope its not just a coal fired power plant sitting next to the terminal...
 
Max123 said:
40mw charging capacity is crazy. He was a bit light on charging details, but presumably they are recharging the battery at every 45min docking cycle. Imagine the kind of electrical grid needed to support this so you don't brownout the entire grid. The on-shore infrastructure that would be needed to make this possible is just as interesting - lets hope its not just a coal fired power plant sitting next to the terminal...
Click to expand...
Nuclear for sure
 
I'm intrigued that a private corporation is willing to go with such a bold application for BEV power. Would love to see their ROI modeling.

Still, it's an indication of where transport is going. As with trucking, short haul stuff like ferries is the first area to tackle, while transoceanic runs are a different equation altogether.

And Harbour Air are trialling an electric converted Beaver floatplane and working toward certification for commercial use next year. Interesting times.
 
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