EST-Floattech supplies Octopus battery systems to Wight Shipyard for Thames vessels

Aluminum shipbuilder Wight Shipyard will install EST-Floattech’s Octopus Series in the Mars Clipper and Cross River Ferry for river bus services company Thames Clippers. The ferries will become part of the fleet for Thames Clippers.

Mars Clipper

The Mars Clipper is a high-speed passenger catamaran ferry. Part of Uber Boat by Thames Clippers, it will have 480kWh of high-energy batteries on board. The vessel has a hybrid design, which enables it to operate solely on batteries on the Thames, in the most central zone of London between the Tower Bridge and Battersea Power Station piers. The technology is not reliant on shore-based charging, with the new boats using excess power from the biofuel engines to recharge their batteries for the Central London stretch.

Cross River Ferry

The Cross River Ferry will be supplied with 960kWh of the Octopus Series battery system. Thames Clippers has been operating a cross-river ferry service for over 20 years.  The current infrastructure is reportedly reaching the end of its life, which has created an opportunity to develop and operate an enhanced all-electric, zero-emission, roll-on/roll-off ferry replacement. This will facilitate automated docking to reduce journey times and increase capacity on the craft for foot and cycle passengers.

According to Thames Clippers, the energy storage solutions from EST-Floattech will limit not only emissions but also exhaust fumes from these London commuter services.

Jelle Meindertsma, sales manager at EST-Floattech, stated, “This collaboration with Wight Shipyard is another milestone toward zero-emission sailing for the maritime industry. The application of our battery system on board the Cross River Ferry and Mars Clipper also shows the potential of the Octopus Series energy storage solution in low-weight vessels, and contributes no fumes in densely populated areas. We would like to thank all parties involved – of course Wight Shipyard for their trust in EST-Floattech but also electrical consultancy company SEC Marine for their involvement and pleasant cooperation. The result of these joint efforts is a ship we can all be proud of. We are confident that the ship will be a valuable addition and will have many successful voyages.”

In related news, Kotug recently chose EST-Floattech’s containerized energy storage solution with Octopus Series for the E-Pusher 1 (Type M), an emission-free pusher that transports cocoa beans for Cargill on inland waterways from the Port of Amsterdam to Zaandam in the Netherlands. According to the companies, it is the world’s first fully electric pusher boat. Click here to read the full story.