By Nazery Khalid; The pace of electrification in the maritime industry has noticeably been picking up in recent years. A growing number of shipowners are shifting from diesel-powered vessels towards electric-powered ones to reduce carbon footprint and emissions to safeguard the environment.

This is in line with meeting the emissions reduction targets set by International Maritime Organization (IMO), the specialised United Nations body responsible to formulate international conventions and standards in navigation safety and environmental protection in shipping. These include the IMO Sulphur Ruling 2020 requiring shipowners to limit the sulphur content in marine fuels by 0.5% with effect from 1 January 2020, reducing emissions by at least 50% by 2050 from 2008 levels and reaching zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from international shipping by 2050.

Electrification of the maritime industry supports the pledge by industry players to ensure the uptake of alternative zero and near-zero GHG fuels by 2030. The pace of electrification has been gaining traction over the years. Around 80% of ocean-going vessels in service have been partly electrified by using hybrid diesel-electric transmission systems. However, it is estimated by various authoritative industry sources that a mere 1% of the world's shipping fleet is currently fully electrified.

There is therefore tremendous upside potential for the electrification of ships. A 2020 report by Statista put the size of the global electric ship market at USD4.6 billion and projected it to grow at a CAGR of 12% until 2026. By then, the value of the market can reach USD9 billion.

Electrification in the maritime industry is especially noticeable in the small and medium size category of vessels such as passenger ferries, workboats and coastal cargo carriers. The relatively limited energy capacity offered by current batteries for ships in the market makes it suitable for vessels serving short and medium-range routes such as coastal, near-sea and hinterland routes. Some are equipped with innovative digital features including auto docking and transit systems that are breaking new grounds for battery-powered vessels.

Electric vessels are especially popular among ferry operators on account of the advantages they have over diesel powered ones. These include the fewer number of crew members onboard electric ferries which cost less to operate compared to diesel- powered ferries. The automatic charging systems using advanced technologies offer shorter turnaround time for electric ferries plus safer, less prone to human error and more efficient operationally. Several cities such as Hong Kong, Amsterdam and Seattle have started using electric ferries to transport people in their waterways.

The breakthrough in battery storage technology in shipping underscores the impressive progress the maritime industry has made in electrification in a relatively short period. Several companies have ordered fully electric cargo vessels featuring swappable batteries and can carry up to 25 tons of cargo. They have zero emissions and can reduce operational costs by up to 50% compared to a conventional vessel. The construction of such vessels marks a milestone in the decarbonization of the maritime industry.

The growing pressure on the maritime transport sector to curb its emissions will be the key driver of the development of fully electric vessels, high-capacity batteries and engine types. With the momentum of electrification in the industry gathering, we can foresee the related technologies to improve and more shipowners opting for fully electric ships.

Concurrent to this, a growing number of ports operators is also providing the infrastructures to cater to electric ships. The world's major ports are investing in shore power (also known as cold ironing) which connects moored vessels to the ports' electrical grid. This facility provides alternative current of up 10 11kV to ships and also offers manual charging for ships which can physically plug their ships' electric cable to the ports' power supply.

Key challenges in electrification

Making a transformative change is never easy. More so undertaking a paradigm shift of giving up decades of practice of using bunker fuel onboard ships or diesel for port equipment to shift to using electricity.

There are several key components in building a sustainable framework to catalyze and scale up the development of electrification in the industry for a greener future in the maritime industry. They are, in no particular order of importance :

1. lobbying governments to establish regulatory framework and introduce incentives, grants and financial and institutional support to encourage the move towards electrification;

1. ensuring the availability of adequate, competitive financing to finance R&D, the procurement of electricity-driven assets and the transition to electric-powered vessels;

1. ensuring the availability of raw materials such as nickel, copper and rare earths used in the generation of e-fuels (which according to a 2023 report by Maersk McKinney Moller Center could pose constraints in scaling up electrification due to limited availability of wind and solar for producing e-fuels in the next decades);

1. changing mindset of industry players to adopt new, cutting-edge technologies and scalable solutions;

• addressing safety of electric-powered assets / equipment, the cargo they handle and the people working with them;

• ensuring the interface amongst the various electricity-driven assets, systems and components are smooth;

• putting in place infrastructures such as charging stations, grid capacity, power distribution networks and shore-to-ship electric chargers that can ensure sufficient, uninterrupted and affordable electricity supply;

• stepping up R&D efforts to develop and refine technologies in areas such as propulsion system, thruster, battery energy storage and generator, and solutions to integrate electricity into existing systems onboard ships to ensure their efficiency, durability and safety;

1. ensuring electrification of maritime assets does not come at the expense of supply chain efficiency, cost competitiveness and economic interests;

• establishing reliable, robust best practices, certifications, protocols and standards;

• developing well-trained human capital in areas such as design, engineering, manufacturing, installation, operation and maintenance of electric assets, equipment and systems in the maritime industry; and

• competing with other industries and sectors which are also decarbonizing for financing, natural resources and human capital.

Overcoming these challenges will help create a conducive environment to facilitate the shift from fossil fuels to electricity in the maritime industry. It will also boost the confidence of users of electric-powered assets in the safety, reliability, efficiency, sustainability and economic logic of marine electrification. By extension, users of shipping services, the environment and economies at large will also benefit from the transition to fully electric assets in the maritime industry.

Powering ahead

As outlined earlier, the voyage towards electrification in the industry is replete with many challenges. To facilitate this process quickly and economically requires huge investment to fund R&D, refine and scale up related technologies to meet the needs of shipowners, port operators and their customers The formulation of new standards must keep pace with growing electrification to ensure the construction, installation and operations of electricity-driven maritime assets are carried out in such a way that enable them to perform well, safe and secure as diesel-powered ones. Those overseeing rules, regulations and risk management need to also stay abreast with growing electrification in the maritime industry. And those going electric should be provided with incentives to invest in the people, assets and technologies to make it happen.

A paradigm shift is needed for electrification in the maritime industry to speed up. Despite the notable pick up in the buy-in amongst the players, the journey is not going to be a smooth sailing in an industry which is not known for making sweeping changes voluntarily and quickly. The limitations they face in various areas – such as financial, raw materials and human capital constraints, limitations on transmission component manufacturing and lack of supply vessels or offshore wind – may hamper progress in electrification of the maritime industry. The difficulty to scale up would result in high price of electricity for use in the maritime industry and discourage industry players from going electric.

That said, exciting times await electrified ships and port equipment. As battery technologies improve, so will performance, economic benefit, operational capability and cost in terms of lower maintenance. The environment will also benefit in terms of lower emissions and noise levels. Governments, financial institutions, underwriters, equipment manufacturers, classification societies and users of shipping services will all do their respective parts to support electrification in the industry. The spotlight will train brightly on them to and work together to create a sustainable framework and conducive environment to facilitate this process.

Nazery Khalid is a scholar, writer and commentator in the maritime industry.