K Line’s Seagate orders electric tugboat at Kanagawa Dockyard

September 17, 2025, by Naida Hakirevic Prevljak

Seagate Corporation, a subsidiary of Japanese shipping major Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha (K Line), has concluded an agreement with compatriot shipbuilder Kanagawa Dockyard for the construction of an electric tugboat powered by a large-capacity lithium-ion battery.

As informed, the tugboat is scheduled for completion in the latter half of 2027 and will be deployed at the Port of Tokuyama-Kudamatsu in Yamaguchi Prefecture, which aims to become a hub for the supply of clean energy, situated in front of one of West Japan’s largest chemical complexes.

The tugboat will facilitate the arrival and departure of ships at the port, and it will also engage in security operations, contributing to the establishment of a carbon-neutral port (CNP).

SGC has discussed the detailed design of the tugboat with Kanagawa Dockyard and equipment manufacturers in accordance with the hybrid EV tug construction plan announced in July 2022.

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The anticipated specifications have recently been achieved due to the downsizing of the tugboat’s equipment and the improvement of maintenance performance resulting from the introduction of a newly developed domestic technology, leading to the construction agreement with Kanagawa Dockyard, according to K Line.

The tugboat will have a hybrid EV system incorporating many new technologies that have not previously been used in domestic tugboats into its drive motors, swing devices, current control systems, and other components.

It is equipped with a power generator to be used when the battery does not have enough remaining electricity during the operation of the electric propulsion system, which is primarily powered by the lithium-ion battery.

This significantly reduces the consumption of fossil fuels and the amount of carbon dioxide emissions compared to tugboats equipped with conventional main engines fueled by heavy oil, as per K Line.

The project has been selected to be a demonstration project linked to the 2025 subsidy for the rationalization of energy consumption and the shift to non-fossil energy in the transportation sector (a project promoting the innovative streamlining of coastal shipping and the shift to non-fossil sources of energy), provided by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. The project aims to contribute to achieving the decarbonization of the coastal ship industry.

In related news, Japanese tugboat services provider Tokyo Kisen and compatriot marine software developer Marindows recently kick-started what is being hailed as Japan’s “first” pure battery-powered EV harbor tugboat development project. As disclosed, the electric harbor tugboat is set to be operated in the ports of Yokohama and Kawasaki, with the goal of contributing to the ports’ net-zero GHG emissions target(s).

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