Swiss battery-maker Leclanché’s new Marine Rack System (MRS), a modular Li-ion battery system, has won approval by the international certification body DNV-GL.

Leclanché will use the MRS on the E-ferry in Denmark, the world’s largest electric ferry, which is equipped with a 4.3 MWh Leclanché lithium-ion battery, and is scheduled for launch later this year. Sailing between the island of Ærø and the mainland, the emission-free passenger and car ferry will have a range of 60 nautical miles.

Safety was one of Leclanché’s key focus areas when developing the MRS. The company performed multiple fire propagation tests to ensure that the system performed safely in even the most extreme situations. The DNV-GL certification process, which requires the battery system to pass 20 separate tests, sets the benchmark for battery safety in marine applications.

According to Leclanché, there is the potential to convert over 1,000 ferries in Europe to electric operation within the next decade. The Leclanché MRS could also be used in other marine applications including hybridization and peak shaving of auxiliary loads of cargo vessels and cruise ships.

“There is a huge opportunity for marine vessels across the world to reduce their harmful emissions and cut their operating costs by leveraging battery storage technology,” said Leclanché CEO Anil Srivastava. “This is why we developed the MRS, and we are delighted that it is the world’s first such solution to receive type approval from DNV-GL.”

“Type approval is an important catalyst to our market growth, as it significantly simplifies the certification process of each vessel that uses the Leclanché MRS,” added Leclanché’s VP of E-Transportation, Antti Väyrynen.

Source: Leclanché