Over 4,500 attendees descended on Electric & Hybrid Marine World Expo in
Amsterdam June 27, 28, 29, 2018 to see the latest innovations from more than 130
exhibitors, as well as learn from some 50 conference papers presented by some
of the industry’s leading lights. The show, which welcomed more attendees,
delegates and exhibits than ever before, has established itself as the world’s
largest dedicated marine propulsion exhibition and conference; and visitors to
the fifth edition of the event were treated to a wide range of exciting new
product launches and key announcements throughout all three days.
Torqeedo’s range of electric and hybrid drives from
0.5-100kW for commercial applications and recreational use generated strong
interest, after the company announced live at the show that the range would be
part of an integrated electric propulsion system for a new aluminum
solar-electric passenger ferry due to enter service on Spain’s Mediterranean
coast later this summer.
The 18m (59ft) ECOCAT has been built by the Metaltec Naval shipyard in Cantabria, an autonomous region on Spain’s north coast. It runs purely on electricity generated by 120 photovoltaic solar panels on its roof. The Torqeedo-supplied propulsion system consists of two 50kW Deep Blue electric motors driven by eight 30.5kWh BMW i3 high-voltage marinized lithium-ion batteries, with four installed in each hull.
According to Torqeedo CEO Christoph Ballin, the BMW batteries are not water-cooled – as they normally would be in smaller applications – as cooling a bank of this size in a narrow hull and a hot climate would have required eight separate through-hull systems.
“Our application engineers instead designed a ‘cool room’ in each hull, which allowed the batteries to be stacked closely together, saving space and reducing future maintenance needs,” explained Ballin. “We also collaborated with Metaltec to develop an innovative software model for management of the solar energy capture and storage process.”
With a top speed of 9.7kts (18km/h) and a normal operating speed of 7kts (13km/h), the 120-passenger boat has a cruising range of eight hours and its operators expect to average six 13km (eight-mile) trips per day. It is the first of Metaltec’s new ECOBOAT series of eco-friendly aluminum vessels.