Singapore builder expands plans for all-electric and hybrid vessels

There is growing interest in hybrid and electric propulsion for crew transfer vessels (CTVs) and crew boats in the offshore energy industry, depending on their potential operations.

“Hybrid typically works when there is a varied operating profile allowing the batteries to charge at higher speeds while running on electric modes at lower speeds. Without the right operating profile, an optimised hull design may provide better results in terms fuel consumption over a hybrid solution.”

Fuels and digitalisation

There has been considerable interest in replacing diesel with alternative fuels to reduce emissions and the environmental impact of vessels but this comes with challenges.

“For alternative fuels, the technology is not mature yet,” says Mr Philip. “Most engines can take biofuels with no need to retrofit. But the key issue is fuel availability.”

Until these fuels are readily available, owners can turn to digitalisation to optimise vessel and fleet operations to reduce their carbon footprint through data-driven changes to the way they operate the vessels, be it electric, hybrid or conventional.

Mr Philip thinks these technologies are more important for electric or hybrid vessels.

“Monitoring energy consumption is critical, especially on electric boats, with real-time feedback to the master and shore,” he explains. “It would be ideal to monitor rpm and speed to optimise vessel operations. There can be a big difference between going 18 knots and 21 knots, so we find a balance between reducing energy consumption and maintaining schedules.”

Alarm monitoring systems are also important for vessel operations, to identify if hatches or valves are open and pumps are running when they are not meant to.

Fleet expansion and newbuilds

“We have a fleet of around 50 vessels, mostly crew boats for the oil and gas industry, working in West Africa, Malaysia, Singapore and the Middle East along with a fleet of harbour craft in Singapore, both conventional, hybrid and electric,” says Mr Philip. “They are Penguin owned, operated and crewed, so we can see things from the operator perspective.”

He says Penguin intends to grow this fleet with newbuilds, many with hybrid propulsion, in the next few years. “Fleet expansion is a big part of our plan. We expect a sizable increase in the fleet in the next two to three years, mostly offshore crew boats.”

Penguin continues to build crew boats and CTV’s for stock, from 40-m Flex crewboats to 27-m WindFlexes, along with a healthy mix of vessels that are built to order including much larger vessels such as two 56-m ropaxes for Abu Dhabi, says Mr Philip.

Demand for its high-speed aluminium vessels is high, and interest in electric or hybrid propulsion is growing, providing potential to build these vessels at Penguin’s shipyards in Singapore and Batam, Indonesia.

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