Svitzer orders four electric tugboats from India

Danish towage services provider Svitzer has signed a deal with India’s Cochin Shipyard (CSL) to build four fully electric, 26-metre tugboats, with an option for four more.

IMAGE: An illustration of Svitzer’s electric tugboat. Svitzer

A tugboat is a boat used to tow or push larger vessels in harbours, rivers, or canals.

Although the immediate impact that these small-scale electric vessels will have on global greenhouse gas emissions might be limited, these vessels hold significance as it provides crucial technical and operational insights that can inform the development of larger-scale electric vessels in the future.

These battery-powered tugs will be built at CSL’s Cochin yard and are designed to run with zero direct emissions during harbour operations, provided they are charged using green electricity.

The first set of vessels will move into construction in the coming months, and the earliest delivery window is late 2027 to early 2028. Additional units may be added later, depending on Svitzer’s fleet renewal strategy and requirements.

By Tuhin Roy

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