Singapore backs electric

The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and the Singapore Maritime Institute (SMI) have awarded funding to three consortiums led by Keppel FELS Limited, SeaTech Solutions and Sembcorp Marine, and comprising a total of  30 enterprises and research institutions, to research, design, build and operate a fully electric harbour craft over the next five years.

Senior Minister of State for Transport, Chee Hong Tat, said: “To build a sustainable hub port, we plan for the 1,600 harbourcraft operating in our waters to run on low-carbon fuels. One possible solution is the electrification of our harbourcraft fleet, which reduces carbon emissions and has zero pollution.”

Supporting emissions reduction

Adopting either new build or retrofit strategies, these electrification pilot projects will demonstrate both commercial and technical viability of specific use cases for full electric harbour craft and will support Singapore’s broader plans to mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by the maritime transport sector.

Singapore has 1,600 licensed diesel-powered harbour craft that provide services such as the transport of personnel and supplies, to ships calling at the port.

The funding for these projects will enable various technologies and charging infrastructures to be studied, test-bedded and deployed across different types of harbour craft and operating profiles, through use cases proposed by the consortiums.

The use cases involve two passenger ferries of different capacities and a lighter craft. By bringing together industry and academia, innovative and commercially viable solutions can be developed to support the deployment of electric harbour craft in Singapore. Beyond the technologies and solutions, new business models will also be developed by the consortiums to enable wider adoption of electric harbour craft.