22/05/08

Hybrid technology also for boats

Introduced the first electric diesel tug boat. General Motors' huge investments in the clean-tech sector

From cars to trailer trucks, to garbage collection vehicles and now to boats. Hybrid technology, whose applications were first developed for the four-wheel world, has been influencing other sectors.

General Motors, the American giant, has just unveiled a tug boat fuelled by a diesel engine assisted by a very powerful electric system capable of slashing diesel oil consumption. It is something very new in the boating sector, where, thanks to the big sizes of the vessels, the problem of space is easier to solve than in a car. “We are interested in exploring the viability of applying this 'green' hybrid technology to the tugboat industry, with possible far-reaching applications in other sectors of the
maritime industry," said John Manison, GE manager.

GE and the C-MAR Group introduced their prototype during the International Tug & Salvage Convention, a trade fair being held in Singapore and there they unveiled its technical features: the diesel engine alongside the electric system can generate a maximum 5,865 h power in the biggest version, while in the smallest the power produced is 1,000 with emissions and fuel consumption from 35 to 80%, if compared to a conventional tugboat. The tugboat platform builds on current hybrid technology projects for locomotives, city buses and off-highway vehicles.

Now the two partners will move a new step forward in the project with the making of a pre-series version in order to test the market interest. The first hybrid locomotive was introduced last year at the GE show Ecoimagination and it will be marketed as from 2009.

This clearly shows how the second stock exchange group in the world is concentrating “clean-tech” huge investments in sectors ranging from aviation to defence, to reach the annual target of 1.5 billion dollars while the present one is 700 million.

Its global research centre together with the American Defence Department is developing solutions to launch plug-in hybrid vehicles, but they are also interested in battery and fuel cell vehicles. Few months ago, actually, they have made an agreement with the Norwegian company Think and with the li-ion battery producer A123 Systems to equip 'runabouts' with second generation batteries. Nissan opted for the second generation batteries too.