Singapore’s Penguin Shipyard this week launched Penguin Refresh, the first of three all-electric ferries being built for parent Penguin International’s Electric Dream project. Under a contract with Shell Singapore signed in 2021, the new 200-passenger Incat Crowther designed single-deck ferries will be used to transport passengers between mainland Singapore’s Pasir Panjang ferry terminal and Shell’s Energy and Chemicals Park on the southern island of Pulau Bukom. They will replace the conventional diesel-powered ferries currently used on the three nautical mile route, eliminating about 1,427 tons of CO2 emissions a year.
Measuring 28.7 meters long by 9.0 meters breadth and with a 2.3 meter depth, the ferries will each have two Danfoss T3000-1500 e-motors and a lithium-ion battery system with a capacity of 1.2 MWh.
As well as the all-electric ferries, the Electric Dream Project includes the provision of high-powered 2,900 kVA rapid shore chargers at Bukum. In the day, a ferry will be charged each time it goes to Bukom, for approximately 6 minutes, via fast charging at the jetty During off-peak hours and overnight, charging will be via slow charging at the small craft basin on Bukom.
Both the ferries and the charging stations are owned by Penguin International.
GREEN LOAN
“The Electric Dream project is substantial because Penguin bore the sole responsibility of financing this project from the very beginning,” said Jeffrey Hing, executive chairman of Penguin International in remarks as the Singapore’s first all-electric ferry was unveiled. “However, we were not daunted by this burden at all, because we truly believed in the project. Later on, as Electric Dream became known in the financial markets, we started to receive many offers from investors and lenders. Eventually, we took up an EFS-Green loan from DBS Bank and Enterprise Singapore. The EFS-Green loan is not just a term loan. It represents the market’s endorsement of our Electric Dream.
“Next, the Electric Dream project is also profound. And that’s because beneath the surface of its simplicity lies a complex network of equipment, systems integrations and controls, much of which you do not find on conventional ships. In fact, some of these are still being commissioned and tested as we speak.
“Beyond machines and programming, Electric Dream is profound for Penguin because it requires a fundamental change in our attitudes and mindsets. We can no longer depend solely on all that is conventional and comfortable. For example, we now need to think in kilowatts and kilowatt hours instead of brake horsepower and metric ton of fuel consumption. We need to dig deeper when specifying out equipment and defining logic controls. In the world of vessel electrification, there is no one-size-fits-all.
MPA AND SHELL IN MOU
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and Shell took the unveiling of the Penguin Refresh as the occasion to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to expand collaboration on maritime decarbonization efforts in Singapore that see them work together to advance the adoption of electric harbor craft and the development of low-and zero-carbon fuels in Singapore.
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