Talking Point: A powerful future links Incat to Elon Musk

Incat Tasmania closely follows research led by the likes of Tesla's Elon Musk, says Robert Clifford

IDEAS: Bob Clifford at his Incat base. Picture: NIKKI DAVIS-JONES

If Elon Musk thinks he can get me on a rocket to Mars, he should think again. More chance of me sailing an Incat catamaran to the moon.

Seriously, what is the connection between the two vastly different organisations?

Elon Musk controls huge multifaceted businesses, car factories, batteries, space ships and many other ventures.

In no way is Incat Tasmania the shipbuilder remotely close to being in that league, so what is the connection? Perhaps Elon noted that, more than 30 years ago, Hoverspeed Great Britain, built by Incat in Tasmania, took the record for the fastest passenger ship across the Atlantic away from the SS United States.

He may also have noted that Incat has shaved time off the record three times — in 1998 Spanish ship Catalonia, and a month later the Danish-owned Catlink V broke the Transatlantic record to claim the coveted Hales Trophy.

The record now stands with an average speed across the Atlantic of 41.28 knots.

Elon is certainly aware that the fastest passenger ship in the world, Francisco, trades daily between Montevideo and Buenos Aires at an average speed above 50 knots, having achieved speeds of 57 knots on trials.

Incat in 2014 responded to a request for ships capable of fast deliveries of Tesla cars to multiple destinations across the world. They were after a novel direct marketing approach that did not use car dealerships.

Some years later the inquiry was for a platform to recover and return booster rockets to the base for re-use.

EXCHANGE OF IDEAS: Elon Musk, founder of SpaceX. Picture: AFP

Hardly surprising that the latest ideas focus on the supply of services to offshore launch sites. An offshore space centre somewhere off the US coast may solve some of the noise and safety problems associated with rockets, but it will be with huge logistical problems.

Many ships of all kinds will be required to service it. Not only passengers, crew and technicians must be transported, but hundreds of other services. All these ships must be built, owned and crewed by Americans owing to the decades-old protection provided to American shipbuilders, therefore Incat can only offer support services not ships (unless we were to build them in the US).

In return for services, Incat will look to battery technology to service future passenger and cargo ships. Electric ships are already being built. Most are small ships operating on short sheltered crossings. Norway is the leader in this field. Mid-size electric-powered ships are in service in Sweden and Denmark, and many more are being built in Europe.

There is no doubt even larger vessels are on the drawing boards and computers of shipbuilders, and we will hear more of these in the near future.

Initially, they will serve routes of less than 100 miles, but eventually Bass Strait-capable vessels will be powered by economical and environmentally friendly electricity.

The ever-improving battery technology provided by battery suppliers like Elon Musk is of vital interest. Not only motor cars and aircraft can be served by batteries, but ships could indeed be a major user. One thousand tonnes of batteries replacing conventional diesel and gas engines can take a ship a long way. Incat Tasmania closely follows research into battery technology by various organisations, including Tesla. Elon Musk can lead us there.

Robert Clifford is the founder and chairman of Incat.