Panama Canal orders 10 hybrid-electric tugs

Spanish shipbuilder Astilleros Armón will build the vessels with options for another 10 similar, Corvus Energy said.

The order for the first 10 was valued at $150 million in total, each of which is to be 30 metres in length with 70 tonnes bollard pull.

Each Corvus Orca battery system will provide 450kWh of power.

In 2014, the canal received the last of 14 tractor tugs, which were also built by Astilleros Armón. It brought the number of tugs in the fleet to 46.

At the time of writing, neither the canal authority nor Covus Energy said whether the new tugs would replace the existing fleet or add to it.

Corvus Energy CEO called the deal a landmark project for the canal authority.

“The Panama Canal is a world-renowned, high-traffic waterway and battery systems in hybrid-electric tugs have been proven to decrease vessel emissions,” he said.

“The new fleet represents an important step in supporting the Panama Canal Authority’s sustainability strategy and ambition to reach net zero GHG emissions by or around 2050.”

Corvus Energy says it has supplied many of the world fleet of hybrid-electric or fully electric tugs with its battery technology, including the HaiSea Marine fleet of five recently delivered to Canada.