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Tokyo Kisen unveils full-electric tugboat development project
A major Japanese owner has started a feasibility study into building a fully electric harbour tug ready for service by the end of this decade
Tokyo Kisen is developing a pure battery-powered harbour tug design to operate with no greenhouse gas emissions in Japanese ports from 2030.
The Yokohama, Japan-headquartered owner has teamed up with Tokyo-based Marindows Inc and e5 Lab Inc to develop the concept, study its feasibility and create its zero-emissions design.
If these studies are successful, basic design is set to commence in 2026, detailed design in 2027 and construction will start in 2028, with this tugboat ready for commercial operations in the ports of Yokohama and Kawasaki in 2030.
The partners will work to a similar timeline to develop a shore-to-ship, fast battery charging system of 1,000-kW capacity, connected to 2,000 kWh of quayside batteries, to provide power to this tugboat and potentially others. They plan to install these on piers, one in each port.
Marindows is co-ordinating this project, Tokyo Kisen will own and operate the fully electric tug and e5 Lab Inc is providing technical support.
This pure-battery harbour tug will have a speed of around 14 knots, a bollard pull of 53 tonnes and propulsion power of 3,000 kW coming from two azimuth thrusters, powered by 6.66 MWh capacity of onboard energy storage.
Tokyo Kisen will use its experience operating Japan’s first hybrid electric-powered tugboat Taiga, which was brought into service in Yokohama in January 2023, for this project.
Taiga was built by Kanagawa Dockyard with 2,486 kWh capacity of Corvus lithium-ion batteries, generators, direct-current switchboard and grid and Z-Peller azimuth thrusters. IHI Power Systems was system integrator and supplied the azimuth thrusters and diesel generators.
“Building on 2.5 years of operating experience with Taiga, this project advances to the next stage, enabling truly zero-emissions operations, by developing and constructing a pure battery-powered tugboat,” said Tokyo Kisen in a statement.
“This could be possible by the combination of a large-capacity onboard battery system of 6.66 MWh and MW-class fast chargers.”
The Japanese owner expects the final construction decision to be made based on the results of the detailed feasibility and concept-design studies.
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