Netherlands-based battery manufacturer EST-Floattech will provide its Octopus Series battery systems to UK shipbuilder Wight Shipyard for installation on two vessels, Mars Clipper and Cross River Ferry. 

The vessels will be operated by ferry service company Thames Clippers. Wight Shipyard, on the Isle of Wight, specializes in high-speed ferries, retrofits and vessel maintenance.

Thames Clippers is replacing its current vessels with electric roll-on/roll-off ferries that allow for automated docking to reduce journey times, and offer increased capacity for pedestrian and cycle passengers.

The hybrid high-speed passenger catamaran Mars Clipper will be operated by Thames Clippers as part of its Uber Boat ferry service on the River Thames in London. It will be fitted with 480 kWh of Octopus Series batteries, allowing it to run solely on battery power in the central zone of the city. The fully-electric Cross River Ferry will be supplied with 960 kWh of the batteries. Both boats will use excess power from their biofuel engines to recharge the batteries for the central London stretch.

“The application of our battery system onboard the Cross River Ferry and Mars Clipper shows the potential of the Octopus Series energy storage solution in low-weight vessels and contributes to no fumes in densely populated areas,” commented Jelle Meindertsma, Sales Manager at EST-Floattech.

Source: EST-Floattech