SAAM battery-electric tug gains LR's low-noise class certification

SAAM Towage has obtained notification from a European classification society that demonstrated its battery-electric tugboats emit less underwater acoustic than diesel-electric counterparts.

This Chile-headquartered owner has been operating two tugboats with hybrid-electric propulsion systems, including large battery banks, in British Columbia, Canada, for two years.

During these operations, London, UK-based classification society, Lloyd’s Register (LR), has been recording the sounds coming from these twin tugboats to evaluate their impact on marine mammals.

In mid-July, SAAM Towage announced one of these tugs, Chief Dan George, was awarded LR’s underwater radiated noise (URN) certification, recognises its low underwater acoustic impact.

This 2023-built, 23-m tug was constructed, along with sister vessel SAAM Volta, by Sanmar Shipyards as part of the ElectRA series developed in partnership with Canadian naval architect Robert Allan Ltd.

They each have 3,616 kWh lithium-ion battery banks, supplied by Corvus Energy, driving two azimuth thrusters on their stern, to generate 70 tonnes of bollard pull.