Wellington electric ferry could be ready late 2019

The southern hemisphere’s first all-electric ferry could be operating in Wellington by late next year.

The $4 million ferry should be built by December 2019 and enter service between Queens Wharf and Days Bay shortly afterwards, East by West ferry company managing director Jeremy Ward says.

It will be built by the Wellington Electric Boat Building Company, established by East by West in Seaview, Lower Hutt..

The 19-metre, 135-passenger boat, which will become the company’s “flagship” ferry, will add three or four additional round trip services a day at peak times, Ward says.

“The new vessel will be powered by twin electric engines, which will enable a 20-knot operational speed and three return back-to-back peak-hour trips on one charge, before a second one-hour charge is required.”

The boat will start operating once testing is completed, enabling the company’s two existing boats to be given spruce-ups at separate times, then providing three boats in service.

The ferry will have a different hull design from diesel-powered vessels, with a displacement hull made from flat carbon fibre panels and only the lower hulls needing moulding.

The company aims to partner with a major New Zealand electricity generator.

Interest in the boat has come from both within New Zealand and overseas.

East by West ferries has been running on Wellington Harbour for almost 30 years.

Long-standing Auckland shipyard McMullen & Wing has partnered with a number of key maritime industry companies, including those behind the design of the Wellington boat, to develop high speed electric ferries across a range of sizes.

“We see high speed EV ferries as a real opportunity for New Zealand to leverage our strong maritime reputation and step up to a global leadership position in zero emission transportation,” McMullen & Wing chief executive officer Michael Eaglen says.

“I am delighted to see Jeremy’s project underway and congratulate him on reaching this stage.  We’re all very much on the same page on this and I hope that getting his project into the public eye will strengthen confidence of Auckland city leaders to commit to electrifying the Auckland fleet with both scale and urgency.”

McMullen & Wing hopes to put an initial Auckland fleet into service ahead of the America’s Cup and APEC in 2021.

Also congratulating East by West, Fullers Group chief executive officer Mike Horne hopes Auckland isn’t too far behind. “In November, Fullers360 launched our Gulf 2025 vision to help ferries work harder for Auckland – which includes proactively working with visionary boat builders to research the potential of electric ferries and infrastructure. We’re working hard to make alternative fuel ferries a reality in the Hauraki Gulf.”