World’s first electrically powered car ferry enabled by Siemens

From Voltium.co.uk

In what is claimed by Siemens to be a global first, an electric car and passenger ferry powered by batteries has entered service in Norway. Extraordinarily, this vessel consumes a mere 150 kWh per route, corresponding to just three day’s use of electricity in a standard Norwegian household. By James Hunt:

ZeroCat is a groundbreaking 80m long by 20m wide vessel that is claimed to be the world's first electrically powered car ferry. It generates zero emissions during use and with minimum noise.

Working with shipbuilder Fjellstrand in Omastrand, Siemens installed the complete electric propulsion system with lithium-ion batteries, which are charged from hydropower. Siemens also erected the newsstand-sized charging stations.

This very advanced vessel is operating on a 5.7km crossing in the Sognefjord between the villages of Lavik and Oppedal. It makes around 34 trips each day, each taking around 20 minutes, excluding the 10 minutes of loading and unloading for vehicles and passengers.

And advanced it is, because ZeroCat – as the name implies – is a lightweight aluminium-hulled catamaran fitted with LED lighting, solar PV panels and an HVAC system having a waste heat recovery feature – all helping the ferry to operate with a low energy consumption. Electric instant water heaters are also installed. 

As a result of the electric propulsion system and these other features, this new environment friendly vessel will annually cut down the use of one million litres of diesel and reduce 570 tonnes of carbon dioxide and 15 tonnes of nitrogen oxide emissions when compared with conventional diesel ferries plying the same route. Norled is also able to reduce the cost of fuel by up to 60%. 

This ferry represents a milestone in terms of operating completely emission-free ferries along Norway's long coastline, with at least 50 other routes currently able to sustain battery-operated vessels.

The propulsion system

The power grid in this region of Norway is relatively weak, so it was decided to install three battery packs – each effectively 1,600 standard car batteries. They comprise one lithium-ion battery on board the ferry, and one at each pier to serve as a buffer. These 260 kWh units supply the vessel while it waits. Afterward, the battery slowly recoups all of this energy from the grid until the ferry returns again to drop off passengers and recharge. 

The vessel's onboard batteries are recharged directly from the grid at night when the not in use. 

The electric propulsion system is Siemens’ BlueDrive PlusC, which was originally introduced as a highly efficient diesel electric propulsion system. The ferry is driven by two electric motors, each with an output of 450 kW and in this case, the system includes a battery and steering system, thruster control for the propellers, an energy management system and an integrated alarm arrangement. The integrated automation systems control and monitor the machineries and auxiliaries on the ferry and are connected via Profibus to all other subsystems.

Commented Sigvald Breivik, Technical director of ship-owner and Siemens' partner in the project, Norled: "We are proud to operate the world's first electric ferry. Siemens has been a great partner in finding innovative and sustainable solutions for our environment."

Said Mario Azar, CEO of the Siemens Business Unit Oil & Gas and Marine: "We are both optimistic and excited about this technology and how it will help shape the future of environmentally friendly maritime technology. We were pleased to apply our expertise in this field, including electric propulsion systems, to such a worthwhile project.”

In the air too

This is far from being the first time that Siemens has been involved with electrically powered transportation. The company has powered other ships using BlueDrive PlusC, has been building electric trains for the world for decades, is involved with electric vehicle (EV) development, and has recently taken electric propulsion even into the air.

For example, the company has recently announced that its researchers have developed a new type of electric motor that, with a weight of just 50kg, delivers a continuous output of about 260kW. This, says the company, is five times more than comparable drive systems. 

This motor has been specially designed for use in aircraft. Thanks to its record-setting power-to-weight ratio, larger aircraft with takeoff weights of up to two tonnes will now be able to use electric drives for the first time.

Moreover, it seems that there’s an increasing interest in electrotechnical firms becoming involved in electric or hybrid-electric drives systems for aircraft use. At the beginning of this year, we reported on how ABB is supplying components – including power electronics – to the ‘Solar Impulse’ project. This is the first aircraft ever to be designed to fly around the world using only solar PV power. This is now on its planned five-month journey of 22,000 miles from Abu Dhabi in the UAE.

To learn more about Siemen’s aircraft electric motor, please use the link at the bottom of this web page.

LINKS

• World-record for Siemens developed electric motor for aircraft
  World-record for Siemens developed electric motor for aircraft