Singapore's First Fully Electric Tug Set for Deployment in April

by Ship & Bunker News Team
Thursday January 8, 2026

Singapore’s first fully electric tugboat has completed commissioning and is expected to be deployed in April.

The tug, PXO-ACE-1, was built by Kuok Maritime Group’s subsidiary, PaxOcean Group, and features an integrated electric propulsion system from ABB, engineering firm ABB said in an email statement on Thursday.

This comes ahead of the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore’s requirement for all newbuild harbour craft to be fully electric or powered by B100 marine biofuel or net-zero marine fuels by 2030.

The vessel features a 3 MWh battery system designed to deliver high power when needed, including instant torque during towing operations.

ABB said its onboard power and energy management system allows the tug to operate efficiently across varying power demands.

“Developing Singapore’s first fully electric tug is a significant achievement and an important step in advancing maritime decarbonisation,” Tan Thai Yong, managing director and CEO of PaxOcean Group, said.