Car ferry charged with battery upgrade

MF Hamlet, operated by Öresundlinjen on the route between Helsingør, Denmark, and Helsingborg, Sweden, will be fitted with large battery packs and new permanent magnet motors for its azimuth thrusters.

High-voltage charging will be available in port, which the operator says will take just 8-12 minutes, or low charging can be done using the gensets if needed. Charging robots already at the port deliver 10.6MW.

Enlisted to carry out the refit is Echandia, which will supply the batteries, and Kongsberg Maritime, which will rebuild the thrusters to enable electric operation.

“Additionally, Kongsberg Maritime will provide a comprehensive energy, automation, and control package, which includes interface to the main switchboard, retrofitting the K-Chief 600 to the new K-Chief system with an Energy Management System, and implementing Mcon thruster control with control chairs on the two bridges,” says Kongsberg Maritime.

It will convert the top gear on four Controllable Pitch thrusters with twin input, where primary input will be driven by new electric magnet motors and secondary input will be connected to the diesel engines.

The work is not scheduled until November, but the vessel, says Kongsberg, will visit Öresund Drydocks in the next couple of weeks for preparation work and maintenance before summer kicks in.

The route on which the ferry will run is one of the busiest car ferry routes in Europe, Kongsberg says, and it will also be prepared for KM’s auto-crossing and auto-docking technology to make transit and harbour manoeuvres autonomous.

“We are proud to lead the electrification of the MF Hamlet ferry. This project demonstrates our dedication to sustainable maritime solutions and our expertise in hybrid and electric upgrades,” said Martin Kjøraas, Head of Aftermarket Sales Seaborne, Integration and Energy, at Kongsberg Maritime.