Ankara ferry energy storage container

What are the technical constraints for battery-electric container shipping?

The key technical constraint for battery-electric container shipping is the volume of the battery system and electric motor relative to the volume occupied by a vessel’s existing engines, fuel storage and mechanical space. The extra weight of the BES system is, however, non-trivial in determining a vessel’s power requirements.

How do battery containers work?

The battery containers are installed on a 104 TEU inland waterway container vessel, which has been modified to allow two units to be mounted onboard. The system enables the vessel to operate on full electric power alone, with no carbon emissions being generated. The energy capacity is equivalent to that of approximately 36 electric passenger cars.

Will Yara Birkeland be a fully electric containership?

Maersk, the largest shipping company by volume, is already piloting battery hybridization on a containership operating between East Asia and West Africa 13. A fully electric 80 m containership, the Yara Birkeland, is expected to begin autonomous operation in Norway in the early 2020s.

Is a battery-electric containership economically feasible?

We quantify economic feasibility through a TCP framework, whereby a battery-electric containership is compared to a reference ship with a two-stroke ICE fuelled by HFO with an onboard scrubber system for compliance with IMO sulfur emissions regulations.

Can a containership be electrified cost-effective?

Our results suggest that over 40% of global containership traffic could be electrified cost-effectively with current technology, reducing CO 2 emissions by 14% for US-based vessels, and mitigating the health impacts of air pollution on coastal communities.

How much CO2 does a battery-electric containership generate?

Assuming an average grid carbon intensity of 535 g CO 2 kWh −1 (inclusive of transmission, conversion and motor inefficiency losses), a battery-electric containership charged in a US port generates approximately 0.78 g CO 2 km −1 (ref. 63).