Fleet of pure electric boxships lined up to shift containers around Shanghai
The city of Shanghai has ordered up to 20 pure electric zero-carbon containerships that will operate on the Huangpu River zero-carbon green logistics route.
The signing of the contracts for the first batch of vessels marked the launch of the so-called Pudong Green and Smart Shipping Ecosystem initiative. According to local media reports, only two 120 teu river-sea vessels will be built initially with an option to construct another 18.
Member units of China State Shipbuilding Corporation, State Power Investment Corporation, COSCO Shipping Group, SIPG, SAIC Motor, and Tsingshan Group will jointly participate in the project. After all are delivered, the total investment in ships and batteries is expected to exceed RMB1bn ($140m).
China State Shipbuilding Corporation’s subsidiaries Wuchang Shipbuilding and Wuhu Shipyard will be in charge of construction work while SAIC Times Power Battery Systems and Shanghai Yikong Power Systems will provide research, development, and manufacturing of marine power batteries for the project.
The zero-emission vessels will use mobile container-type lithium batteries as the main power supply. The vessel batteries can be either charged or swapped depending on terminal conditions and a single charge or replacement can achieve a cruising range of 360 km.
