In the new era of cutbacks, a low-emission public transport project is charging ahead. The final piece of the Auckland electric ferry puzzle has fallen into place, with Swedish multi-national ABB winning the
contract to install superchargers on piers – with the promise of a top-up charge in five to 10 minutes as passengers hop off and on.

It means Auckland’s first two electric ferries – currently under construction in East Tāmaki by McMullin & Wing for EV Maritime – will have somewhere to charge when they hit the water in the second half of next year. There will be several months of testing before commercial operation begins. Two diesel-electric hybrids, due early 2025, are also on the way as the city’s 27-vessel fleet begins its multi-year electrification programme.

The $27.6 million ABB contract is for an initial five megawatt-level charging solutions for Auckland Transport – three at the main ferry terminal, one at Hobsonville Point and one at Half Moon Bay. It covers the entire design, supply, installation and commissioning of all five chargers and the associated infrastructure, AT low emission ferry programme director Nathan Cammock told the Herald.

Fifty-one per cent of the funding is coming from New Zealand Transport Agency Waka Kotahi and 49 per cent from Auckland Council’s Climate Action Transport Targeted Rate, Cammock said.

The supercharger contract has come in under the $30m AT had been budgeting,

Central government has chipped in with $27m to cover 75 per cent of the cost of AT’s first two electric ferries, while AT has earmarked $80m for seven hybrids or electric boats to follow.

Electric ferries are more expensive than diesel-powered vessels. But EV Maritime founder Michael Eaglen argues that will be balanced out, and then some, by lower running costs.

It’s a case of “pay more now to pay less later”, Eaglen said.

“In the public transport space, where the vessels are much, much busier than they might be in private [operation] or even in the tourism sector, the economics for electrifying ferries are quite compelling.

“Because these boats are doing four or five thousand hours per year of operating time, they burn a lot of diesel and [require] an enormous amount of maintenance. And so when you can start making really big savings out of those two costs, you can afford to spend a bit up front to make those savings. It’s better use of public funds.”

There will be one chunky recurring cost. Each electric ferry will be powered by around 12 tonnes of lithium-ion batteries, which will need to be replaced, at a cost of around $1m. “Longevity is a function of how fully batteries are charged and how deeply they are discharged. Based on detailed route and schedule modelling, EV Maritime and AT are expecting the batteries to be replaced after seven to 10 years depending on how each vessel is used,” Eaglen said.

AT is also pitching the electric ferries as being a lot quieter and more reliable, and featuring perks like indoor storage for bikes and scooters. Specifications indicate they can handle 200 passengers and 24 bikes.

And that the electrification of the fleet will help Auckland Council meet its goal of halving its emissions by 2030. Today, ferries account for 6 per cent of passengers but produce 20 per cent of the city’s public transport emissions as they burn through some 13 million litres of diesel per year.

The charger timetable

AT says the direct current chargers – each packing enough punch to power a small town – will be installed over 2024 and 2025.

The council agency did not immediately supply a more detailed timeline, but tender documents called for:

The winning supplier had to provide Megawatt Charging Standard equipment comprising:

The delivery of the chargers will be closely co-ordinated with the construction of AT’s two electric ferries. There will be an iterative testing and commissioning process for each charger and each vessel to ensure smooth operation, Cammock said.

When will the boats come in?

Five electric ferries are on the way for Auckland.

An aspirational target to get the first purely electric, 200-passenger ferry on the water by mid-2024 (with the second to follow a few months later) has slipped.

“Launch probably won’t be June, but we’re still on track for both boats to be in the water in 2024, which will line up well with the first of the charging stations coming online,” Eaglen said earlier this week.

The first of the two 300-passenger hybrid ferries, which are being built by Whanganui’s Q-West, is not due until around April 2025.

The second hybrid is due in 2026. Fullers led the initial design and development of the hybrid vessels. Both vessels are funded by AT and NZTAA at a cost of around $20m each.

The remaining vessels, which may be electric, hybrids or a combination of both, will be put to a competitive tender.

None of the pure electric hybrid ferries will be first to the punch. Wellington got a smaller, $12m electric ferry last year.

Not reinventing the wheel

Each charger had to have two plugs, as each of the first two electric ferries has two independent banks of batteries – one in each hull of their catamaran design.

Another key element of the tender was a solution based on the industry-standard Megawatt Charging System rather than a bespoke solution.

ABB says the Auckland solution will be similar in charging capacity to the Swedish firm’s project to support 10 all-electric ferries for public transportation provider Transtejo Soflusa in Lisbon, Portugal. The first two chargers in that build are due to come online this month.

Inner, mid harbour focus

For now, the Gulf Habour run and the contentious Waiheke route are off the table.

“With a range of up to 20 nautical miles [37km], the ferries could technically work any of AT’s routes,” Eaglen said.

“[But] given AT’s schedule objectives, electric vessels are currently best suited to the inner and mid harbour. ‘Mid Harbour’ comprises Half Moon Bay, Hobsonville Point, West Harbour, the three of which together represent over half the emissions of the current AT ferry fleet.”

Waiheke (around 20km from the CBD ferry terminal) and other longer routes would need charging infrastructure for a round-trip

Ferry operator Fullers is investigating hydrogen power for heavier vessels for longer routes. Last year, CEO Mike Horne went on a fact-finding tour to the US, where the first hydrogen ferry had recently launched.

Chris Keall is an Auckland-based member of the Herald’s business team. He joined the Herald in 2018 and is the technology editor and a senior business writer.