Fast Ferries News

Earlier this month Strategic Marine hosted the keel laying ceremony for 2 x 40m 550 Passenger Fast Ferry for the Government of Bermuda, with the Director of the Department of Marine and Ports Services for the Government of Bermuda and various supply partners participating in the project.

Construction on a new passenger ferry, designed by Incat Crowther for Western Australian ferry operator Rottnest Fast Ferries, has commenced at Austal Philippines.The new ferry will operate on the popular Perth to Rottnest Island tourism route with the 32-meter aluminum catamaran set to have an operational capacity of up to 400 passengers and five crew seated over three decks. The vessel will also feature extensive cargo and luggage space for passengers, including bicycle storage areas on the main and mid decks.

The new passenger fast ferry, Xin Ming Xhu VIII, is now servicing commuters on Hong Kong’s waterways after digital shipbuilder Incat Crowther delivered the first of six new passenger fast ferries to mass transit operator Sun Ferry.Xin Ming Xhu VIII, built by Guangzhou-based shipbuilder AFAI Southern Shipyard, is now in operation on the busy Central Ferry Pier to Mui Wo and Cheung Chau commuter routes in Hong Kong.Capable of transporting up to 500 passengers, the new low-draft vessel features Incat Crowther's latest generation hull form.

Brunvoll Mar-El will deliver the onshore charging system for the Bergen area fast ferries, more specifically on the Knarvik-Bergen and Kleppestø-Bergen routes. Brunvoll Mar-El has from earlier been contracted to deliver the electrical and hybrid system integration for the 3 ferries, and the contracts add up to both onboard and onshore system integration.Brunvoll Mar-El is a systems integrator in the market for power and weight optimized low-emission high-speed passenger vessels.

Dutch shipbuilding conglomerate Damen announced it has secured approval from classification society Bureau Veritas as well as the Dutch and Belgian flag authorities for its designs of methanol-powered workboats.The shipbuilder said it can now offer designs for a wide range of methanol-powered compact vessels, ranging from tugs, stationary dredgers and high-speed vessels to fast crew suppliers, pilot boats, stan patrols and fast ferries, as and when the engines for these types…

Three new Incat Crowther-designed fast ferries have been delivered to serve the residents of Germany’s North Sea Island communities, who are set to receive a new commuter ferry service to the mainland.The new ferries will service three busy routes between the North Frisian Islands and Neuharlingersiel, located on the north coast of Germany’s mainland.The three vessels, named WattnExpress, Inselexpress I and Watt Sprinter, have been constructed by Singapore-based Penguin Shipyard International.According to Incat Crowther…

Norway's Kongsberg Maritime has secured a contract to supply its Kamewa waterjets for two fast ferries to be built by Singapore's Penguin Shipyard for a Middle East client. Each of the new 56-meter Ropax ferries will be equipped with four Kongsberg Kamewa 71 S-4 waterjets and control systems.Designed by Incat Crowther UK, the ferries will have a capacity of 250 passengers and 25 cars. The 71 S-4s are from the Kongsberg Kamewa Steel series of waterjets, with a maximum power of…

Dales Marine announced the appointment of David Gray as Chief Naval Architect, bringing the business a wealth of experience in ship and yacht design.Gray's areas of specialties cover the design and development of new vessels and conversions, including ships and floating structures, large yachts, and small commercial vessels such as workboats, dredgers, fast ferries, and other special service craft. In addition, Gray's has a keen interest in electric propulsion, hydrofoils, roll stability and stabilizers…

Norway-based Zinus, a supplier of shore power products and autonomous solutions for ports and vessels, has secured a contract with Penguin Shipyard International in Singapore for the delivery of a fully automatic charging solution to three electric passenger catamarans Penguin is building for Shell.Zinus' autonomous charging solution will enable fully electric and sustainable sea transportation for workers going to and from Shell Energy and Chemicals Park in Singapore.Zinus’ scope includes three charging towers for installation on land…

British aluminum shipbuilder The Wight Shipyard Co. on Tuesday announced an all-share merger with France-based shipbuilder OCEA to create a combined group aiming to capitalize on the fast ferry and offshore renewable energy markets opportunities. The deal is scheduled to complete by March 2022 and will see The Wight Shipyard Co. nearly double in size.Peter Morton, CEO of The Wight Shipyard Co., said, “This is a transformational deal for The Wight Shipyard Co. and for the Isle of Wight, confirming the resurgence of the shipbuilding industry in the United Kingdom.

Bellingham, Wash. shipbuilder All American Marine (AAM) said it has appointed Terry Federer as business development manager, effective May 10. Federer takes over the role from Ron Wille, who was recently named president and COO.In his new role, Federer will focus on the continued expansion of the aluminum shipbuilder’s presence in the national and international maritime markets. AAM, now part of Bryton Marine Group, builds highspeed passenger boats, hybrid vessels, dinner cruise boats, patrol vessels and research vessels.

Spanish shipbuilder Astilleros Gondán has tapped ABB to supply all-electric power solutions for ten fast 40-meter urban passenger ferries transporting up to 540 passengers each across Lisbon’s Tagus river.The contract comes a week after Astilleros Gondan said it would start building a series of 10 fully electric passenger ferries for the Portuguese river passenger transport operator Transtejo.The ten new ferries will replace the existing fleet serving this route when they enter service between 2022 and 2024.In addition to energy storage…

Zhuhai Fast Ferry Company has taken delivery of two new fast ferries for operations in the Pearl River Delta region.Designed by Incat Crowther and built by AFAI Southern Shipyard, the 140.5-foot newbuilds Xin Hai Yun and Xin Hai Jun were handed over in December 2020.The Incat Crowther 40s are powered by twin MTU 12V2000 M72 main engines, driving Rolls Royce Kamewa S71-4 waterjets. According to the designer, the vessels are sleek, fast and offer low fuel consumption.The vessel…

North America is increasingly adopting energy storage systems (ESS) to use in combination with combustion engines or as the sole energy carrier in fully electric-powered systems.We clearly see a transition from ‘consideration’ to ‘execution’ of hybrid and all-electric maritime projects. Stakeholders want to explore how to make vessels more energy efficient and less polluting. Corvus Energy has deployed over half of the ESSs aboard vessels globally, totaling over 300 megawatt hours (MWh).In North America, Corvus has deployed 24 MWh of energy storage capacity, and there are 13 vessels under U.S.

Mackay Marine said it provided marine electronics systems and technologies for Kitsap Transit's two new 250-passenger vessels built by Nichols Brothers Boat Builders (NBBB).Bremerton, Wash.-based public transit agency ordered the new vessels in December 2018 to provide expedient commuter services to downtown Seattle from both Kingston, Wash. and a planned Southworth, Wash. route.The bow-loading fast ferries, built by NBBB at its Whidbey Island, Wash. shipyard, are state-of-the-art, low-wake vessels.

Construction is well progressed on a pair of 40-meter catamaran passenger ferries at AFAI Southern Shipyard, in the Peoples Republic of China, designer Incat Crowther said on Wednesday.To be operated by the Zhuhai Fast Ferry Company, the vessels will form the next generation of sleek, fast, low fuel consumption ferries operating in the Pearl River Delta region.The Incat Crowther-designed vessels will accommodate 199 economy passengers on a single deck with VIP passengers having a dedicated cabin on the upper deck.

As the global maritime community collectively is slowly pushed toward decarbonization, it is generally agreed that there is no ‘silver bullet’ technical solution and that progress will come in steps, led by public/private collaboration and funding.A recent development following that script is the awarding this week of federal funds to a Washington State team working to accelerate ferry technology, with the joint innovation project selected for funding from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Transit Administration.

A group of public and private partners in Washington have come together to accelerate the design of a fast foil ferry to provide zero-emissions, high-speed passenger ferry service in the Evergreen State.Participants in the Joint Innovation Project include three Washington ports that have joined forces to support the effort: Port of Anacortes, Port of Bellingham and Port of Skagit. The vessel is under design by Glosten, a naval architecture and marine engineering firm, and Bieker Boats, a performance marine craft designer.

New Zealand companies HamiltonJet and EV Maritime have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to build advanced composite, battery-powered commuter ferries.Their cooperation was formalized at HamiltonJet’s Christchurch headquarters in May, in the presence of Hon Dr Megan Woods, New Zealand’s Minister of Energy & Resources and Minister of Research Science & Innovation.With the aim of decarbonizing the harbor cities of the world, the firms are seeking to develop one of the world’s first truly high-speed…

Wärtsilä said it will provide the propulsion solutions for a new 115-meter high-speed ferry being built by Austal at the Australian shipbuilder’s yard in the Philippines for Danish operator Molslinjen.The newbuild will feature four Wärtsilä 31 engines, recognized by Guinness World Records as being the world’s most efficient four-stroke diesel engine, and four Wärtsilä WXJ1500SRI waterjets. Wärtsilä will also supply its ProTouch bridge controls system. The order with Wärtsilä was placed in May this year.“This combination of the Wärtsilä 31 engine and WXJ waterjets is unique for fast ferries…

The Norwegean global maritime industry group Wilh. Wilhelmsen Holding ASA and Denmark-based supply chain manager NorSea join forces to develop liquid hydrogen supply chain for maritime applications in Norway.The environmentally friendly liquid hydrogen can be offered to commercial shipping in large scale supply within first quarter 2024, claimed the companies.Together with major industry players such as Equinor, Viking Cruises, Air Liquide, and more, this is a huge and important step towards a sustainable future, and it aligns perfectly with Wilhelmsen’s long-term strategy supporting the UN sustainable development goals.The project was recently awarded a grant of NOK 33.5 million (USD 3.7 million) from the governmental PILOT-E scheme…

Representatives from the U.S. Army and federal and local elected officials joined Vigor for a keel laying ceremony, celebrating the first milestone in the construction of the Army’s next generation landing craft, the Maneuver Support Vessel (Light) or MSV(L).The nearly billion dollar contract to build MSV(L) was awarded to Vigor in October, 2017. The new design, developed in partnership with BMT, improves the capabilities of the current LCM-8 and provides the optimal combination of performance…

Marine engineering design specialist Incat Crowther has been awarded the contract for the construction of a new vessel for New York and New Jersey ferry operator Seastreak.The new vessel will operate as a sister ship to the company’s Seastreak Commodore ferry, which was delivered to the company in June 2018, the success of this vessel enabling a second Incat Crowther 45 ferry to accommodate the large passenger volume along traditional routes serviced by Seastreak.The addition of the new vessel brings the operator’s fleet of Incat Crowther-designed vessels to a total of nine.