Offshore Support Vessel to Become World’s Longest-Range Hybrid Vessel
Energy service company and tanker operator AET provided details on its planned conversion of one of its support vessels to create a hybrid electric vessel with the world’s longest range. Based in Galveston, Texas, and a division of Malaysia’s MISC, the company reports one of its existing purpose-built Lightering Support Vessels has been selected for the hybrid conversion project.
The company operates a fleet of these vessels reporting it performed more than 15,500 STS transfers making it a market leader in the U.S. Gulf region. It also provides lightering operations in offshore Uruguay and the Brazilian Basin.
AET has signed an agreement with marine battery company Fleetzero for the hybrid power project. Under the agreement, one of AET's Lightering Support Vessels (LSV) will be retrofitted with a plug-in hybrid-electric system. The Lightering Support vessels are used to transport equipment and crew to conduct ship-to-ship cargo transfer operations.
“By integrating plug-in hybrid electric solutions into our fleet, we are transforming ambition into action to deliver more energy with less emissions,” commented Zahid Osman, President & Group CEO of MISC Group. “This pilot project also allows us to evaluate the feasibility and operational performance of this technology, paving the way for potential deployment across AET’s and potentially MISC’s fleet.”
After the conversion project, the vessel will operate primarily on battery power, reducing greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 82 percent according to the companies when compared to conventional LSVs on a tank-to-wake basis. They estimated it will help the vessel to avoid 1,220 tonnes of greenhouse gases per year and significantly reduce fuel consumption and maintenance costs.
Fleetzero, a start-up focusing on marine battery applications reports its products are designed by mariners and engineers from the world’s best automotive EV companies, the company’s Leviathan solution incorporates the best automotive EV technology but is fundamentally built for the unique challenges and requirements at sea. Its battery storage solutions are modular to provide a scalable power range between 200 kWh to hundreds of Megawatt-hours of energy storage. They are designed and tested in accordance with ABS, DNV, RINA, Lloyds, and ClassNK rules.
The base agreement for the project was signed in December 2024 with the companies reporting more details will be released in the near future.
Fleetzero in March 2024 reported it had received a strategic investment from MOL Plus, the venture capital operation of Mitsui O.S. K. Lines. The companies reported they would be exploring the application of the battery system on MOL’s vessels.