Keel laid for HaiSea’s zero-emission electric harbour tug

The construction of HaiSea Marine’s three zero-emission battery-powered harbour tugs has begun at the Sanmar Shipyard Tuzla in Turkey with a keel-laying ceremony.

According to owners, the ElectRA 2800 harbour tugs will be first-of-class battery electric tugs, designed to perform their regular ship-berthing and unberthing missions using battery electric power.

The tugs will be 28 metres in length, with approximately 70 tonnes bollard pull and approximately 5,240 kWh of battery capacity.

Together with two RAstar 4000-DF escort dual fuel (LNG and diesel) tugs, three ElectRA tugboats are part of the green fleet being built for HaiSea Marine, a joint venture partnership between the Haisla First Nation and Seaspan.

Norwegian Corvus Energy will supply batteries for the three electric tugs that will operate at the LNG Canada export terminal in Kitimat, British Columbia.

Main propulsion units for all five low-emission tugs were ordered from German propulsion manufacturer Schottel.

To remind, HaiSea Marine secured a contract to build and operate escort and harbour tugs required for the Kitimat facility back in 2019.

As explained, an ample supply of clean hydroelectric power available in Kitimat will enable the harbour tugs to recharge from dedicated shore charging facilities at their berths between dockings, effectively resulting in near-zero emissions when running on batteries.

Greenhous gas (GHG) emissions from the new tugs are expected to be significantly lower (54% and 24% respectively) than diesel-powered alternatives.

Designed by naval architect company, Robert Allan, the new fleet of tugs is scheduled to arrive in British Columbia in 2023.

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