Corvus Energy battery systems for BC Ferries’ new electric ship quartet

Dutch shipbuilder Damen Shipyards Group has selected Norway-based energy storage company Corvus Energy to supply energy storage systems (ESS) for four new, fully electric-capable passenger car ferries being built for Canadian ferry operator BC Ferries.

The ship quartet, currently under construction in Romania, will join BC Ferries’ hybrid electric Island class vessel fleet.

The green ferries are scheduled for delivery by 2027 and will expand BC Ferries’ existing fleet of six hybrid diesel-electric Island class ferries.

Corvus Energy is to supply battery systems for the four new vessels—together totaling over 8 MWh of battery capacity cumulatively for the four systems. What is more, the new Island class ferries will be equipped with Corvus Orca ESS. BC Ferries’ six Island class vessels currently in operation are also equipped with Corvus Energy ESS.

“We are proud to continue our partnership with BC Ferries and Damen Shipyards in providing battery solutions for BC Ferries’ Island Class vessels,” Tor-Gunnar Hovig, Head of Region-Americas at Corvus Energy, commented.

“BC Ferries’ fully electric capable ferries will help to drive the transition to cleaner, greener ferry operations.”

The new class of ferries are electric-ready with the ability to operate on fully electric power, utilizing renewable shore power for battery charging. When a vessel is operating on electric power alone, it will not consume fuel and there will be zero shipboard emissions, benefiting the environment, passengers, and local communities at large.

The newbuilds are planned to serve routes between Nanaimo and Gabriola Island, and Campbell River and Quadra Island. Each vessel will carry up to 390 passengers and 47 vehicles.

The new units are part of BC Ferries’ broader strategy to reduce corporate emissions. According to BC Ferries’ Executive Director of Shipbuilding, Ed Hooper, the four electric ferries are expected to significantly reduce the annual greenhouse gas emissions on two busy routes.

In related news, Romania-based Damen Shipyards Galati launched the latest Island class ferry for BC Ferries last week.

Splashed on the Danube River on May 22, the ferry is the first in a series of the four aforementioned battery-equipped diesel-hybrid vessels.