At the 2024 International WorkBoat Show, Elliot Bay Design Group (EBDG) and Diversified Marine, Inc., unveiled plans for the industry’s first and only electrified “truckable” tug. The tug, 26’ x 3.6’, features twin permanent magnet motors producing 800+ total horsepower and dual rudders for steering. While the battery range and duration will vary depending on the application, EBDG director of sales Joe Hudspeth tells WorkBoat.com that the charge “can last a full working day.” Construction is tentatively scheduled for next year.
According to Adam Hutchinson, project manager with Diversified Marine, this tug was originally being designed for diesel power, before the team decided to move to an electric design and partnered up with EBDG.
When asked what drove the switch in plans, Hutchinson said, “The big push with zero emissions and CO2 capture gave us an opportunity to do something different than what we would have historically done. This was our avenue to get into the game.”
This kind of design would not have been possible even a few years ago given the relatively small stature of the tug and the battery power necessary for hours of work per charge. With the evolution of these energy sources, however, the team was able to make the design work now with the capabilities necessary for the target industries.
“Using the most advanced state of the art components and power-dense energy storage system, we are able to provide enough power for this vessel to operate all day long doing its standard mission,” Hudspeth said. “We know that every mission varies from coast to coast and operating area to operating area. So, if it's not as strenuous of a circumstance, we can actually downsize some of the components, but we wanted to go big and give the operator the most flexibility, and so we pack it full of energy storage to provide the most flexibility.”
Speaking in generic terms, he says that he has seen the most interest from “people who want to do their part in some sort of emissions mitigating operations and those that believe in the whole value chain are reaching out and wanting these tractable tugs with zero emissions.” He adds that, right now, ports especially have been the biggest market.
Attendees at the International WorkBoat show have been mostly asking the team about the battery life for the tug, according to Hutchinson, as well as the ease of transportation and decommission. On that latter point, he says it takes just “a couple of hours from water to truck to strap down.”
Given the fact that the tug comes in under 27 feet in length, Hudspeth and Hutchinson point toward the accessibility for operation as an important factor for this construction. They indicate that while the tug is designed and built to US Coast Guard safety standards, it is not a US Coast Guard inspected vessel.
“It makes it really easy for someone to get into owning and operating this type of tug does not require a licensed Captain.”
Hutchinson says that an undisclosed customer has put in an order for a fleet of four, which will be the first of these electric truckable tugs on the water.
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