EVs are not only rolling on the roads, they are puttering over waterways as well. Who knew? Well, in fact the world’s navies have relied on electric propulsion for a century – submarines (non-nuclear) are powered by diesel/electric hybrid systems, and have been since World War One. Some nuclear ships are also EVs in a sense, with a nuclear-powered steam turbine driving a generator.
This week, marketing research firm Research and Markets released a new report called “Marine Electric Vehicles 2012 – 2022,” which details the full range of waterborne EVs, from electric sea scooters for SCUBA divers to $25-million hybrid super-yachts. Electric craft plying the seaways of the future include tourist submarines, electric tugboats, Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs) and robot surface craft designed to clean up oil spills.
The report notes that new laws from Taiwan to Europe are making electric boats the norm on inland waterways, even for water skiing.Charged readers won’t be surprised to learn that electric watercraft often outperform old-fashioned diesel-powered vessels. More surprising is the report’s conclusion that civil marine EVs will overtake military ones as the largest segment of this $2.3-billion market.
Sections of the new report include:
- Surface Craft
- Manned Underwater Electric Vehicles
- Autonomous Underwater Vehicles (AUVs)
- Biomimetic Unmanned Underwater Craft
- Drive Trains, Components and Infrastructure
- Market Forecasts 2011-2021
http://www.researchandmarkets.
Image: Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited
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