Norwegian transportation company The Fjords has taken delivery of its zero emission passenger vessel, Future of The Fjords.
Featuring a length of 42 meters, the all-electric catamaran will begin operation in mid-May, making around 700 yearly round trips along the UNESCO World Heritage-listed fjord route between Flåm and Gudvangen.
The Fjords said that this is the first vessel of its kind to offer completely emission free transport through the Western Norwegian landscape.
Future of The Fjords is the sister ship to Vision of The Fjords, a diesel electric hybrid launched in 2016. Although both ships are designed and constructed by Norwegian shipyard Brødrene Aa, they are very different.
“Vision of The Fjords was an important development for us, but we had the ambition to take it one step further and replace the diesel electric propulsion with all-electric – thus eradicating all noise and emissions to air for the entire route. Future of The Fjords does just that, minimising its impact on the environment while maximising the experience of passengers,” Rolf Sandvik, The Fjords CEO, said.
The NOK 144 million vessel is propelled by two 450kW electric motors, enabling cruising speeds of 16 knots. Additionally, The Fjords has, in partnership with Brødrene Aa, developed a unique charging solution called the Power Dock.
With a length of 40 meters and a width of 5 meters, the floating glass fibre dock will sit in the water at Gudvangen, housing a 2.4 MWh battery pack. This charges steadily throughout the day via connection to the local grid network, which does not have the capacity to charge the Future of The Fjords directly. The solution allows the vessel to ‘refill’ in just 20 minutes.