Sweden's Echandia supplies battery system to Tasmanian shipbuilder

Swedish maritime battery company Echandia will be supplying its Echandia Core battery system to Incat Tasmania, a Hobart-based shipbuilder specialising in high-speed aluminium ferries.

Among other global commissions, Echandia has played a role in the electrification of Singapore’s harbour fleet and supplied batteries to the Canadian Coast Guard. This is the first time it has worked with Incat.

The battery system will be installed in Incat’s new 78 m hybrid catamaran, which has been designed for maximum deployment flexibility while significantly reducing opex, allowing operators to transition away from fossil fuels in a practical and cost-effective way.

With the ability to carry up to 650 people and 120 cars at a maximum speed of 28 knots, the vessel can operate in fully electric, hybrid or generator-only modes. As a result, operators can choose to run zero emissions on short crossings and in emission-control zones, while extending range across longer routes.

“The vessel has been conceived as part of a series with flexibility and modularity as a high priority to ensure the vessels can serve many applications over its design life,” said Incat’s Chief Technical Officer, Stewart Wells.

“We need a battery system that can handle both high power demands and frequent charging cycles across different routes. Echandia Core gives us exactly that.”

Echandia Core battery system. Image: Supplied

The system is built on lithium-titanium-oxide (LTO) cell technology, which experiences minimal degradation, Echandia said, providing stable performance throughout the system’s lifecycle. This also enables capacity to be expanded later without meaningful performance differences between existing and new modules.

“A vessel built with this flexibility in mind needs a battery system that keeps future options open,” said Felix Backgård, Head of Technical Sales at Echandia.

“Because LTO chemistry exhibits minimal degradation over time, capacity can later be expanded without a performance mismatch between old and new modules. Echandia Core is designed for that full lifecycle flexibility.”

The vessel will be available for bareboat (uncrewed) or time charter from January 2027.

Top image caption: Incat’s hybrid catamaran (render). Image: Supplied