(31.05.2019) I ettermiddag seiler MS «Kongen» ut fra Aker brygge, på vei til Horten for å bygges om til batterielektrisk drift. Startskuddet har dermed gått for at landets største bilfrie passasjersamband blir utslippsfritt og mer stillegående i løpet av 2019. Totalt skal tre båter bygges om det neste halvåret.
By the end of 2019, the Nesodd boats will be electric, which means that 65 percent of Ruter’s boat journeys will be emission-free. “Boat journeys account for around 10 percent of emissions from public transport, so this electrification is paying off. The goal is emission-free public transport in 2028, and for boats the ambition may be achievable as early as 2024. By then, Nesodd boats, island boats and hopefully express boats will all be running on emission-free solutions.
At Horten Skipsreparasjoner (HSR), MS “Kongen” will be converted to battery-electric operation this summer. MS “Kongen”, MS “Dronningen” and MS “Prinsen”, which are part of the B10 Nesoddsambandet, currently run on liquefied natural gas.
Green showcase for the maritime sector
In October last year, Ruter and Norled signed a change order to convert the B10 Nesoddsambandet to electric operation. Norled ordered battery packs immediately and entered into an agreement with HSR to convert the boats. In Horten, the shift schedules for the shipyard workers have been set, and they will be working intensively throughout the summer to install a 26-ton battery in the engine room of MS “Kongen”. While the boat’s engine room is being rebuilt, the ship’s side will also be clearly marked to show that the boat has battery-electric operation.
- The work that HSR will do on the three ferries is extensive. It starts with the dismantling and removal of the gas system, gas tank and all the gas equipment on the boat that helps to power the vessel today. Then the process of building the 26-ton battery, which will be placed below deck, can begin. Due to the size and weight of the battery, it is necessary to build and secure new compartments and foundations below deck. The 2018 KW/h battery system will be installed in the room where the gas tank is currently located. At the same time, the air conditioning on the boats will be renovated and upgraded to use seawater as an energy source,” says Jarle Myrbø, operations inspector at Norled.
Worthy of preservation on the outside, future-oriented on the inside
While the boats are being rebuilt in Horten, the quay facilities at Aker Brygge and Rådhusbrygge 4 are being prepared for battery-electric operation, with Sporveien as the developer. A modern shore power system with enough power to electrify all of Ruter’s boat transport will be in place. The old, listed yellow house at Rådhusbrygge 4 will retain its facade. Inside, a substation with associated technical installations will be built. In total, there will be 8 MW of electricity, divided into 4MW for the Nesodd boats, 2MW for the island boats and potentially 2MW for the express boats. Conduits have already been laid to run power cables underground at Rådhusplassen and up to the pier.
An automatic charging plug is currently being manufactured in Italy. It will be installed on the quayside at Aker Brygge. Each time the Nesodd boat is docked, it will charge for about eight minutes. The boats have biodiesel generators as a backup solution, but this power supply is sufficient for them to run all day.
- Many stakeholders are working together to achieve a transition to emission-free boat transport, and we look forward to getting MS “Kongen” back in operation as a battery-electric passenger boat. As European Green Capital in 2019, it is gratifying that Oslo is putting in place a shore power system that can ensure battery-electric operation of the Nesodd boats and Ruter’s other boat routes,” says Snorre Lægran, Director of Planning at Ruter.
MS “Huldra” is inserted
While MS “Kongen” is being refitted, the reserve boat MS “Huldra” is being put into regular operation. It has just undergone an overhaul and will be in regular operation until all three boats have been fully refurbished. MS “Huldra” has a passenger capacity of 438 seats, which is somewhat fewer than the 600 seats on MS “Kongen”, MS “Dronningen” and MS “Prinsen”.
The island boats are moved to Rådhusbrygge 1
The implications of the Nesodden boats running on battery-electric power are that the island boats will depart from Rådhusbrygge 1 during the summer period. There are signs indicating where the boats depart from, and service personnel are on hand to assist customers traveling to the islands. It is possible to buy a ticket at Rådhusbrygge 1 and the boat service will be as usual. The boats go from Aker Brygge, Rådhusbrygge 1, to Hovedøya, Bleikøya, Gressholmen, Lindøya, Nakkholmen and Langøyene. The most popular island in terms of the number of boardings and disembarkations is Hovedøya. 2018 was a record year, largely thanks to a very hot summer, and in total there were more than 1.1 million boardings throughout 2018, compared with 846,000 in 2017.
During the summer, more specifically from June 1 to August 31, the island boats run summer routes. This means boats every half hour to Hovedøya, Gressholmen and Nakkholmen, as well as hourly departures to the other islands. When there are many travelers, extra capacity is added. In 2021, the island boats will also be electric.
Facts about Nesoddbåtene and Rådhusbrygge 4:
Nesoddsambandet B10 consists of the three boats MS “Kongen”, MS “Dronningen” and MS “Prinsen”.
In 2018, the Nesodd boats carried 2.8 million passengers.
A total of 4.4 million passengers were registered on Ruter’s boats in 2018, which corresponds to a total growth of 11.6% throughout Ruter’s area, compared with the previous year.
Boat operations account for approximately 10 per cent of greenhouse gas emissions from public transport.
A change order was signed on 17 October 2018 for the electrification of the B10 Nesoddsambandet. The contract runs until 30.06.2034.
Preliminary calculations estimate that the electrification of B10 will have an annual additional cost in relation to operations of approximately NOK 7-8 million until 2034.
Actors involved in the redevelopment of Rådhusbrygge 4: Bymiljøetaten, Hafslund, Port of Oslo, Norled, Sporveien and Ruter
For more information:
Norled: Communications Director Marianne Frønsdal, 951 29 383, marianne.fronsdal@norled.no
Sporveien: Communications Advisor Sven Øvergaard: 900 96 246, sven.overgaard@sporveien.com
Ruter: Communications Manager Gro Janborg: 46409349, presse@ruter.no
