Port Of L.A. To Get First Electric Tug Via Diesel Conversion
A diesel-powered tug boat chugging as it guides ships in the Port of Los Angeles will soon be doing its duties with an emission-free electric motor after a dramatic makeover, making it the first electric tug in the nation's busiest port.
Together with shipbuilder Diversified Marine Inc., L.A.-startup Arc Boat Company is converting a 26-foot diesel-tug into a battery-powered electric vessel, as the Port of L.A. seeks to be zero-emission by 2030.
Primarily a builder of recreational electric boats, the tug conversion marks Arc's first foray into commercial marine, but likely, not the last.
'It's too early to speak to our specific roadmap, but I acknowledge that there's interest in going electric across a variety of commercial vessels,' said Arc co-founder and CEO Mitch Lee, in an interview. 'You already see interest in electric ferries, for example, and our goal is to help modernize the entire industry.'
Indeed, the electric boat industry has grown over the past few years including industry leaders Navier, Forza X1 Inc. and Candela Technology AB.
Last year Navier launched shuttle service for employees of financial infrastructure platform company Stripe in the San Francisco Bay Area using its electric hydrofoil vessels.
Tech startup Navier is launching a hydrofoil transit program with financial platform company Stripe ... More in the San Francisco Bay Area to transport Stripe employees from Marin County to company headquarters in South San Francisco.
Arc currently produces two recreational electric boats, the Arc One and Arc Sport. The electric tug boat conversion now underway is designed to offer both the cost and performance advantage electric propulsion provides.
'50% of the operating costs being maintenance and fuel is what we're specifically targeting with a solution like this,' said Kofi Asante, vice president of business development at Arc.
'From a commercial operator perspective we're delivering a tug that is very familiar,' added Lee. 'It is staffed the way that you typically staff these things, except you get more torque, except that you don't have these diesel engines that are kind of generating a lot of fumes.'
In addition, while it might take a crew of five or six individuals to operate a diesel-powered tug, only one person is required to operate an electric tug and that person does not have to be a licensed captain, according to Asante.
Adding momentum to Arc's move into the commercial sector is the establishment of the White House Office of Shipbuilding, created by Pres. Donald Trump in an executive order signed on April 5.
The office is designed to stimulate the domestic shipbuilding and provides financial incentives to support the industry.
'We actually think that now, more than ever, is a really special time to be introducing innovative solutions that can get to market quickly, have great operating costs and then have high performance, because that's how you actually continue to kind of level the playing field on a global level, with commercial ship building,' said Asante. 'So we think that the new ship building White House department is going to be a catalyst for a lot of this.'
It will be a few more months until Arc's electric tug will be ready to begin guiding ships in the busy Port of Los Angeles, but it's a project with a sense of urgency, according to Frank Manning, president of Diversified Marine.
'As the backbone of port logistics, workboats are a crucial component to the shipping industry. It's time to bring them into the modern age,' said Manning, in a statement. 'With a partner like Arc, we will now be able to set the bar for the future of American ports, and truly show the benefits of what clean maritime technology can achieve.'
It all starts with this first electric tug, said Arc's Lee, who sees the company's commercial growth floating far beyond the Port of L.A.
'We're starting with workloads, and we have big aspirations here,' said Lee. 'We think that's critical infrastructure, critical capabilities for the U.S., but our aspirations are certainly larger than that.'
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