One of the main builders of tugs in China for the south-east Asian market will construct all-electric tugs to an adapted design by a Canadian naval architect
Cheoy Lee Shipyards will start building battery powered tugs at its shipyard in China after purchasing an adapted design from Canadian naval architect Robert Allan Ltd.
The Hong Kong-headquartered shipbuilder will use Robert Allan’s AmpRA 2900-CL design to build electric-driven tugboats for assisting ships in harbours for owners and operators.
Cheoy Lee mostly builds for clients in south-east Asia and Latin America, especially PSA Marine and its affiliates, and is building a series of tugboats for Svitzer.
Robert Allan said its AmpRA 2900-CL tugs would have space for up to around 7 MWh of battery capacity and could achieve a bollard pull of 70 tonnes on batteries alone.
“These vessels will reduce fuel consumption, reduce maintenance, and help decarbonise harbour tug operations,” said the naval architect.
There is also space in the general arrangement for installation of two generators, which could run on biofuels or diesel, on board to extend operations and support delivery voyages.
“In daily service, the tugs will operate on battery power alone, but two generators will be installed to provide operators with maximum flexibility,” said Robert Allan.
