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Electric retrofit begins on US West Coast tugboat
A tug will be retrofitted with an electric powertrain to provide zero-emissions ship handling in a major US West Coast port
Diversified Marine is converting an 8-m tugboat into an electric workboat at its shipyard in Portland, Oregon, to operate in the Port of Los Angeles, in California, USA.
This tugboat can be transported by lorry between sites, and will use battery-electric propulsion when operating in port.
Arc Boat Co is supplying its electric powertrain and software, based on existing high-voltage architecture it has already installed on yachts and power boats, thus scaling up its battery-electric propulsion and entering the workboat market.
This tugboat will have a 450-kW dual-motor drivetrain and large lithium-ion battery packs, a redesigned master’s helm and a real-time performance-monitoring unit.
Arc chief executive and co-founder Mitch Lee said installing electric powertrains on workboats is part of electrifying the entire marine industry.
“This project sets the stage for our future efforts,” he said. “We are entering the commercial market with the most advanced maritime technology available.”
Arc’s research and development lead, Robert Binkowski, said there is huge market potential for electric workboats. “This is the future of every port in the world,” he said. “We want to make anything that works full-time in the harbour zero emissions.”
Arc’s retrofitted tugboat is scheduled to start operations in the Port of Los Angeles in Q3 2025 and Arc will use lessons learned from its integration and its own designs for installing electric powertrains on larger tugs.
Electrifying workboats helps ports advance toward their own clean air goals. Los Angeles and Long Beach aim to transition to zero-emissions equipment by 2030 and zero-emissions lorries by 2035, with harbour craft to follow.
Arc vice president of business development, Kofi Asante, said electric-propulsion on harbour vessels will reduce the high levels of air pollutants in the communities around the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach.
“Tugboats allow us to scale our technology in a logical way that addresses a range of needs. Our retrofit is the beginning of a major workboat transition.”
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