Royal Dutch Shell has ordered at least 3x electric ferries in Singapore in order to replace the diesel boats it uses to transport visitors and employees between its oil refining and chemicals plant on Bukom island and mainland-Singapore.
The new ferries are scheduled to enter service in the first half of 2023. When the ships are operational they'll be the first fully electric ferry service in Singapore as well as a first for Shell globally, the company revealed in a statement.
According to Nick Potter, general manager of Shell Shipping & Maritime for the Asia Pacific and the Middle East said that shipping's future would involve different parts of the sector using different fuels, and electrification was a solution to decarbonize short voyages, including port operations.
The contract to design, build and operate the ferries was awarded by Shell to Singapore's Penguin International Ltd.
Bukom (southwestern Singapore) is the site of the company's largest wholly-owned refinery with a total capacity of 500,000 barrels per day.
~3000 ferry passengers travel the 5,5 km to Bukom each day.