Shell’s ‘Electric Dream’ ferries move closer to reality in Singapore

Shell Eastern Petroleum (Pte) unveiled a number of investments over the last two years as part of its 10-year plan to transform its Pulau Bukom manufacturing site into a low-carbon energy solutions hub. 

These investments will underpin the development of carbon capture and storage, production of biofuels and hydrogen, and recycling plastic waste into feedstock for chemical products, while reducing the production of crude oil products. The goal of the investments in the newly named Shell Energy and Chemicals Park Singapore is “to accelerate our transformation into a provider of net-zero emissions energy products and services,” says Shell downstream director Huibert Vigeveno. “As a key global hub for Shell, Singapore has a very important role to play in this. Together, these investments will help us to cut carbon emissions at our operations and provide the low-carbon and circular solutions that our customers want, in sectors ranging from chemicals to automotive to aviation,” adds Mr Vigeveno. 

Not forgotten in the transformation of Shell Energy and Chemicals Park is its vital waterborne transportation link that is served by diesel-powered ferries that transport about 3,000 passengers daily from the mainland to Pulau Bukom. 

Last year, Shell awarded a contract to Singapore’s Penguin International to design, build and operate three all-electric ferries for deployment on the approximately 5.5-km ferry route off the Straits of Singapore to replace the current fleet. When operational, this will be the first fully electric ferry service in Singapore and a first for Shell globally. Zero-emissions, fully electric ferries are key pieces to Shell’s ambitions of cutting CO2 emissions by half by 2030 compared with 2016 from its operations at the Shell Energy and Chemicals Park Singapore in Pulau Bukom. 

Those ambitions are now moving closer to reality. Construction of the first of three all-electric ferries for Shell’s Energy and Chemicals Park Singapore will begin in March, according to Penguin International managing director James Tham. 

While Mr Tham was not able to reveal too much about the project at this stage, he did confirm that the detailed engineering and long-lead procurement tasks were in the process of being finalised. “We remain on schedule to commission the first Electric Dream ferry in December 2022,” he says. 

Scheduled to start in H1 2023, the long-term charter will comprise a minimum of three pure electric ferries – each with a capacity of 200 passengers on a single deck, 1.2 MWh of batteries and a cruising speed of over 20 knots – making about 1.8M passenger trips annually between the mainland Pasir Panjang Ferry Terminal and Pulau Bukom. Each of the aluminium-hulled catamarans will have an overall length of 28 m, beam of 9 m, maximum draught of 1.3 m and depth of 2.2 m. Built to Bureau Veritas class, the Singapore-flag vessels will each have two Danfoss T3000-1500 e-motors that will drive two fixed-pitch propellers. 

Under the contract, Penguin will design, install and operate ultra-fast shore chargers on Pulau Bukom that are capable of recharging each ferry in under 10 minutes. 

This fully privately funded project is named Electric Dream by Penguin and its project partners, Australian ship designer Incat Crowther and vessel propulsion specialists Razor Blunt Labs. 

“One key takeaway, is I doubt anyone has designed 200-passenger commercial ferries that run at over 20 knots and take less than 10 minutes to recharge after every round trip during peak-hour runs,” says Mr Tham. “You can imagine the kind of battery capacity and charging currents, as well as the cable handling system this would involve. We’ve overcome all the obstacles that were before us. We will commence construction next month of our first vessel.” 

Previously when discussing the project with Riviera Maritime Media, Mr Tham noted the “privately funded Electric Dream project is much more than just electric ferries and shore chargers. It is Singapore’s first real-world commercial application of marine electrification. Penguin and our project partners Incat Crowther and Razor Blunt Labs have designed a safe and reliable end-to-end solution that meets Shell’s standards.” 

Australian designer Incat Crowther has at least eight vessels in operation featuring electrified drivetrains, including the recently launched Sea Change, a 21-m catamaran ferry owned by Switch Marine that uses hydrogen fuel cells — the first of its type in the US. 

In December, Incat Crowther was awarded a contract to design an Incat Crowther 32 electric ferry for Fullers360 of Auckland, New Zealand. The ferry’s drivetrain consists of four Danfoss EM-PMI540-T4000 electric motors directly mounted to Hamilton HTX42 water jets, with battery power of 1,944 kWh to achieve maximum speeds over 28 knots. 

Unlike the zero-emissions Electric Dream ferries, Fullers360’s vessel, while primarily electric, will have diesel generators on board that can be used to extend the vessel’s range by directly feeding the propulsion motors, charging the batteries, or in a hybrid boost mode that combines both sources. 

“Shipping’s future will involve different parts of the sector using different fuels, and electrification is a solution to decarbonise short voyages, including port operations,” says Shell Shipping and Maritime general manager, Asia Pacific & Middle East Nick Potter. “Switching to zero-emissions, fully electric ferries is part of Shell’s ambition to help accelerate progress towards net-zero emissions in the shipping sector.”