Ships will also be electrified

According to the forecast of EVTank, a third-party institution focused on the research of electric vehicles and their related industry chains, China's electric ship market is expected to increase to 36.75 billion yuan in 2026, and the demand for lithium batteries will also increase from 173.2MWh in 2021 to 11.2GWh in 2026. This forecast indicates that the electric vessel market will maintain rapid growth in the next few years. At the same time, the Intelligent new energy ship Technology Innovation Industry Alliance also predicts that the share of battery ships is expected to reach 15% by 2030, further proving the huge potential of the electric ship market. According to the type of power source, while referring to the division of electric vehicles, electric ships can be initially divided into the following three types: pure electric ships: ships mainly generated by batteries to generate electric propulsion, including lithium battery + supercapacitor electric ships, lead-acid battery electric ships, nickel-metal hydride battery electric ships. Hybrid electric ship: refers to the use of two or more different power sources (such as diesel engine and electric motor) of the ship, the common hybrid electric ship has diesel electric hybrid ship, solar energy and electric energy hybrid electric ship, wind energy and electric energy hybrid electric ship. Fuel cell electric ship: the use of fuel cells as a power source of the ship, the fuel cell can directly convert the chemical energy of the fuel (such as hydrogen, methanol, zinc, etc.) through a chemical reaction, the common fuel cell electric ship hydrogen fuel cell electric ship, methanol fuel cell electric ship, zinc fuel cell electric ship and so on.

Environmental protection: Electric ships have the characteristics of energy saving, low emissions, low pollution and cleanliness, which is conducive to reducing greenhouse gas emissions and protecting the environment. Economy: The operating costs of electric ships are relatively low, especially pure electric ships, whose power consumption costs are much lower than traditional oil vessels. Low noise: The propulsion system of electric ships is usually powered by electricity, which is lower than the engine noise of traditional oil vessels and improves the driving experience. Energy diversification: Electric ships can use a variety of energy sources, including electric energy, solar energy, wind energy, etc., which improves the efficiency and flexibility of energy utilization. In recent years, governments have gradually increased their attention to global climate change and sustainable energy development, and have introduced relevant policies to support the development of electric ships. For example, in the "Outline for the Construction of a powerful country in Transportation", China for the first time proposed the goal of strengthening the independent design and construction capacity of new energy vessels, and included pure electric vessels in the national encouraged industries. The Ministry of Transport and other five departments jointly issued the "Action Plan for the Green Development of the Ship Manufacturing Industry (2024-2030)", pointing out the direction for the electric ship manufacturing industry. The National Development and Reform Commission and the Ministry of Finance issued the "Several measures on Strengthening support for large-scale equipment renewal and the replacement of old consumer goods with new ones", which proposed that for the new clean energy ships, subsidies will be given according to different ship types according to 1000~2200 yuan/gross ton to promote the development of new energy ships with real money and silver. The introduction of these policies has provided strong support and guarantee for the development of electric ships.

The development of electric ships cannot be separated from technological progress and innovation. At present, relevant science and technology enterprises are actively expanding territory, and key technologies continue to make breakthroughs. For example: from Shanghai Changxing Island to Hengsha Island, the world's first pure supercapacitor power ferry - "New ecology" has been put into use, innovative use of supercapacitors as ship power, and supporting 2.5MW class DC shore power system charging scheme, charging 15 minutes can sail for 1 hour, providing a new application demonstration for China's inland and coastal lifepo4 battery powered ships. At present, the Yangtze River navigation system has built a total of four pure electric government vessels, three of which have been put into use in the Three Gorges reservoir area. The 30-meter class pure electric measuring ship "Channel 06202" is the first pure electric measuring ship approved by the Ministry of Transport. It is designed to sail 180 kilometers on a single charge, which can fully meet the maintenance and emergency measurement needs of the middle and upper reaches of the Yangtze River channel. These technological innovations and breakthroughs have injected new vitality and momentum into the development of electric ships. The development of electric ships also needs to improve the support of supporting facilities. At present, China is actively promoting the construction of electric ship charging and replacing supporting facilities. For example, the Maritime Administration of the Ministry of Transport actively carried out the preparation of the Provisional Rules for the Technology and Inspection of pure battery powered Ships, and has issued a draft for comment. The Yangtze River Shipping Administration, together with relevant units, declared the special pilot project "Construction of new energy and clean energy application and monitoring system for Yangtze River Main line Vessels", promoted the construction of more than 10 new energy vessels such as power batteries, methanol and hydrogen fuel, and summarized the construction, inspection, operation and management experience in practice. Pilot the construction of a number of public charging and replacing facilities for ships, promote the formulation of relevant safety operation procedures, solve technical and product compatibility problems, guide the orderly construction of port and port container power charging and replacing power stations, and accelerate the research and introduction of regional electric ship charging and replacing facilities layout plan. The construction of these supporting facilities provides a strong support for the wide application of electric ships.

At present, electric ships have been widely used in many fields. For example, inland shipping: electric ships have broad application prospects in the field of inland shipping. Due to the relatively short inland shipping distance and complex channel conditions, the advantages of zero emissions, low noise and low operating costs of electric ships can be fully utilized. Offshore ports: In offshore port areas, electric vessels are also gradually being used. These ships are mainly used for short-distance transportation and operations in ports, such as cargo handling, personnel pick-up and drop-off. Tourism: Electric ships also have certain application potential in the field of tourism and sightseeing. For example, some scenic spots and amusement parks will use electric boats as tour tools to provide tourists with a comfortable and environmentally friendly tour experience. In the future, with the continuous progress of technology and the continuous support of policies, electric ships are expected to be widely used in more fields and become an important force for the shipping industry to achieve green and low-carbon transformation.

In summary, the current development status of electric ships shows the characteristics of expanding market size, strengthening policy support, continuous technological progress and innovation, gradually improving the construction of supporting facilities and broad market application prospects. In the future, electric vessels are expected to play a more important role in the shipping industry.