Iconic Tasmanian shipbuilder discusses his ‘electrifying’ journey

Electrification

With fuel costs, efficiency and decarbonisation top of mind for owners, Mr Clifford sees electrification as the future of ferries, and Incat plans to lead the charge. This past year, it won the Sustainability and Green Economy Award at the 2025 Tasmanian Export Awards, recognising the company’s leadership in sustainable shipbuilding.

Proof positive of the firm’s sustainable shipping commitment is China Zorrilla (Hull 096), the world’s largest electric-powered ship and the largest Incat has built to date, at 130 m long. The ship, ordered by long-time customer Buquebus, was loaded onto the heavy-lift ship Black Marlin at the end of July for its long journey to Argentina.

“New tech vessels must be seen to be believed”

The successful loading represents years of planning, design, engineering and construction by the shipbuilder and is another major moment in a project that has attracted worldwide attention for redefining the future of large-scale sustainable shipping. Mr Clifford called it "an extraordinary moment, not just for Incat, but for the future of sustainable maritime transport," adding that it was “the most significant project in Incat’s history.”

Mr Clifford said supplier cooperation was vital in the vessel’s construction and points to several elements that made the engineering challenging. “Matching the waterjets, e-motors, switchboards, and batteries with lightweight aluminium structures. Weight control is everything.”

And Incat is not done yet. In early July, it marked a major construction milestone in its electric ferry programme for Danish operator Molslinjen, successfully completing the rollback of Hull 102 at its Prince of Wales Bay shipyard. The rollback in the production bay allows for the installation of the vessel’s passenger deck superstructures.
Hull 102 is one of three 129 m battery-electric ferries for Molslinjen as part of the world’s largest electrification project at sea. Once delivered, the vessels will be the largest electric ferries operating in Europe.
The three-vessel programme forms part of the Danish ferry owner’s decarbonisation strategy and will operate on Denmark’s busy Kattegat routes, delivering high-speed, high-capacity, low-emissions transport.

“We are moving full steam ahead with the green transition right now,” said Molslinjen chief executive, Carsten Jensen, on the firm’s increasing use of electricity to power its fleet. He anticipates all of his company’s routes will be transitioned to electric operation by 2030.

Mr Jensen expects the newbuilds to join his company’s fleet in 2028, ushering in an electric future for high-speed ferries on the Kattegat routes.

Construction continues on the three vessels at Incat’s Hobart shipyard as the company scales up production to meet growing international demand for large-scale electric ships.

“Even very large ships will have some level of batteries installed,” noted Mr Clifford. “However, the emphasis will be on short service vessels. Now the limit is around 100 nm at service speeds. This will shortly grow to 200 nm as technology advances. This makes an extraordinarily large number of ships that will be electric,” he observed, noting, “They will be even bigger in future.”

When asked what he saw as the biggest challenge ahead for Incat, Mr Clifford, said: “Supplying the market. Only shipyards experienced in lightweight construction will succeed, and they can be counted on one hand.”