EMEA News
Siemens to Supply Propulsion Systems for Two Electric Ferries
Siemens AG (Siemens) Thursday announced that it has been selected to supply propulsion systems for two new battery-powered ferries, set to be operated by Fjord1 on the Anda-Lote route on Norway's west coast.
The contract means that the first four battery-driven ferries in the world will run on technology developed and manufactured, says Siemens, noting that it delivered the propulsion system for the world's first all-electric ferry Ampere in 2015.
"With this contract, we have proven our leading position in environmentally-friendly propulsion solution," said Juergen Brandes, CEO of the Process Industries and Drives Division at Siemens, adding: "we have shown that the technology is robust, sustainable and reduces costs."
Siemens says it will provide the ferries with BlueDrive PlusC electric propulsion solution, which includes lithium-ion batteries as energy storage, thruster and remote control for the propellers, an energy management system, as well as an integrated alarm and monitoring system.
The vessels' energy storage systems will be charged at each end of the route with a shore power connection hooked into the local grid, which will be monitored from the ferries based on WiFi communication.
"Once the infrastructure is in place on land, it makes sense to make the most of the investments with two ferries. Therefore we chose to go for the most environmentally-friendly option", said Arild Austrheim, Maritime Technical Director at Fjord1.
The tender is said to be the first to be issued under Norway's zero and low emissions requirement on the ferry route between Anda and Lote.
As Ship & Bunker has previously reported, in 2015, the Norwegian government ministers, as well as coastal shipping industry players, signed the Green Coastal Shipping programme, a declaration aimed at making Norway's coastal fleet the world's most environmentally friendly.
