130 meters with batteries equivalent to 550 model and

The transport network electrification To reduce emissions as much as possible is one of the challenges that companies and countries are facing. He electric car It is what catches us more closely, but where we also see progress is in the electric plane and in him maritime transport sector. And, in this sense, Latin America has taken a giant step with its new 100% electric ferry: the ‘China Zorrilla’.

So much that it is already the largest electric ferry on the planet.

Enormous. The ferry is a good starting point to start the electrification of the sea. Among its advantages is the Reduction of direct emissionsbut also lower maintenance costs (in theory) and a significant reduction in Submarine noisebeneficial for life in that environment. According to estimates, electrifying the 50 -meter length ferris to cover 100 -kilometer routes would save 50% fossil fuel in this segment, but what the ‘China Zorrilla’ has done is, as we see in MotorpasionDemential.

And it is because of its dimensions. It measures 130 meters long, 32 wide and has capacity for 2,100 passengers and 225 vehicles. The ship has just been thrown into the Hobart shipyard in Australia, where it has been built, and the idea is to communicate the Argentine cities of Buenos Aires and Colonia de Sacramento, in Uruguay. It is a journey of about 55 kilometers that will cover three times a day.

To batteries. The electrification problem is the same, whatever the vehicle: batteries. The larger and more capacity need, the larger and more heavy the batteries will be. In the case of ‘China Zorrilla’, these batteries have about 5,000 modules with a weight of about 280 tons. It is an absolute barbarity and, to put this in context, its creators They affirmed which is equivalent to batteries of 850 electric cars.

It is the largest battery installed on a boat and its total capacity is 40 MWh. Let’s put the battery of the Tesla Model and Long Range with its 78.4 kWh. They are 0.0784, and the rapid calculations is that the ‘China Zorrilla’ has the capacity of almost 550 model and long rage. It is crazy for a 55 -kilometer journey, but in the end it is the ‘price’ of moving such a monster.

And the load? Another mocked. It is the big question that may arise. If, despite the advances in speed, loading an electric car already has a considerable amount of time, what happens if we have to load a 40 MWh battery? The answer is simple: High power electroles. Specifically, giant ‘plugs’ that will admit 15 MW charges.

The idea is that these loaders are in both ports, being able to recharge during the eviction and shipping of passengers with 24 MWh capacity. In theorythe 20% to 80% recharge will take about forty minutes and it is estimated that the night load pulls renewable energy, especially in the Uruguayan port.

Without rival. Due to the type of controlled journeys that make this type of ships, their electrification is a very interesting idea that is already being explored in other parts of the world. In Spain, we have the ‘Barbarian Cap‘, a ferry that joins Ibiza with Formentera and has a battery of just 1 MWh. Is owned by Balearia, a company that is already shaping A much more ambitious project: Unite rate and tangier.

There will be two 100% electric ferries with a total capacity of up to 39 MWh that is also provided that are loaded in 40 minutes in the ports and that will have something very interesting to reduce times: arms in the ports that will replace batteries. It will also have diesel support engines in case things are twisted and capacity for 804 passengers and 225 cars.

In this sense, the ‘China Zorilla’ seems to continue reigning in the limited segment of electric ferries. And, in case you are wondering, the name of the ship pays tribute to the Uruguayan actress Concepción Matilde Zorrilla.

Images | Buquebus

In Xataka | The 100% electric plane of beta technologies aspires to be very versatile: it will also have a passenger variant