Incat chairman Bob Clifford is transitioning the business to green ferries

Bob Clifford’s green dream has become a reality, promising to bring ‘hundreds of jobs’ to the state. See the progress on Incat’s mega electric ferry >>

Incat battery electric ship under construction at Hobart. Picture: Chris Kidd

Incat is well under way in building its first electric ferry, with a second zero-emission ship order being processed.

The 130m ferry currently under construction at Incat’s Derwent Park shipyard will be the world’s largest lightweight battery electric ship.

Set for completion in 2025, the ship – for South American customer Buquebus – will be able to carry 2100 passengers and 226 vehicles.

Operating on an international river route between Argentina and Uruguay, the ship will also include a 2000 sqm duty free shop.

Visiting Incat on Wednesday, Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Energy Jenny McAllister said Tasmanian shipbuilder was leading the way on green manufacturing jobs.

Incat Founder Robert Clifford with the battery electric ship under construction at Hobart. Picture: Chris Kidd

“Incat are well established globally as builders of innovative lightweight aluminium ships and what they are telling us is that in a world that is decarbonising, demand for these products has never been greater,” Ms McAllister said.

“This is exciting. And what it means for this local manufacturing operation is the opportunity to grow, to take on more orders, to bring on more staff, and to build the capabilities and skills right here in Tasmania to build high-quality products for export to the world.”

Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Carol Brown said Incat continued to put Tasmania on the map as a leader in shipbuilding across the world.

Incat chairman Robert Clifford said it was exciting to see the business’s first electric ferry taking shape.

Early designs of the electric powered ferry Incat is set to clinch a deal on to build for South American customer Buquebus.

“Battery ferries have been around for a while, but mostly in old-fashioned steel ships.

“We’re combining a battery technology with ships of aluminium, lightweight, which will take half the power of a steel ship, therefore we go twice as far with the same amount of power,” Mr Clifford said.

“We have a huge potential world market for such a product. There’s over 1000 ships needed in the very near future.

“Now, we won’t build a thousand, but let’s see how many we can build. And we’ll start off by expanding our workforce as quickly as we can. We need another 200 workers just as quickly as we can get them, and a lot more after that.”

Mr Clifford said the battery in the ferry was four times larger than any other battery that’s been used to power a ship before.

Incat has enlisted former Premier Peter Gutwein as a strategic adviser help the company seize the opportunities of zero-emissions ferries.