World’s 1st Maritime Megawatt Charging System Chosen for AT’s Electric Ferries

Swiss technology firm ABB has successfully secured a deal with Auckland Transport (abbreviated AT), New Zealand’s transport services as well as infrastructure provider, to deliver the maritime industry’s first-ever megawatt charging system (popular as MCS) for all-electric as well as hybrid-electric ferries.

The shore-to-ship charging technology, which uses an interface shared by trucking and aviation, is projected to reduce market barriers for electric ships.

As part of its Mission Electric effort, AT has ordered two 200-chair all-electric ferries with two 300-person hybrid-electric ferries, with the goal of becoming the Southern Hemisphere’s greatest electric ferry fleet operator by 2030.

The new ferries are expected to help AT reduce diesel use by 1.5 million litres and also CO2e emissions by a whopping 4,000 metric tons a year, similar to the yearly emissions created by around 90 diesel buses.

While ferries only carry 6% of Auckland’s public transport riders, their diesel engines account for 20% of the city’s public transportation greenhouse gas emissions. New Zealand has established decarbonization targets in its Zero Carbon Act, which includes a 2050 net-zero emissions goal.

AT has opted to electrify its ferry network utilizing the CharIN megawatt charging unit standard, given the responsibility for public transportation infrastructure related to the Hauraki Gulf.

Particularly, ABB will collaborate with local partners to deliver, engineer, and install five full charging solutions at various ferry terminals in 2024 and 2025.

Each system will include a pair of 1.65MW chargers on the ferry pontoons, which will include a transformer, MCS connectors, ACS880 converters, and cable management. The chargers will provide more than three megawatts of direct current (DC) electricity to support the rapid turnarounds and high-power needs required to keep the ferry fleet running smoothly.

During passenger turnarounds, the crew will handle the connectors. The Auckland installation is going to be the first ABB-supplied MCS to use the standardized plug-in interface, despite the fact that the company has been providing shore-to-ship power for almost two decades, beginning with an agreement with Princess Cruises in Alaska.

The charging capacity of the Auckland solution will be comparable to ABB’s landmark project in Lisbon, Portugal, to power 10 all-electric ferries serving public transportation firm Transtejo Soflusa.

As the worldwide ferry fleet electrifies, ABB anticipates that more operators will choose a uniform interface familiar to other industries.

Reference: Offshore Energy

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