"World's largest" electric ferry pens next chapter in Australia

The Incat Hull 096, hailed as the “world’s largest” battery-electric ship, recently touched the water for the first time.

As disclosed, the vessel—christened China Zorrilla—was launched on May 2 at Australia’s high-speed catamaran ferry manufacturer Incat Tasmania’s shipyard in Hobart.

At 130 meters long, the Incat Hull 096, the ninth Incat unit built for Uruguay-headquartered ferry operator Buquebus, is described as both the biggest electric ship in the world and as the largest electric vehicle “ever built.”

According to Incat, the ferry was fitted with over 250 tonnes of batteries and an energy storage system (ESS) with more than 40 megawatt-hours of installed capacity. The ESS is connected to eight electric-driven waterjets and supplied by Finnish technology giant Wärtsilä.

Speaking about the float-out, Roger Holm, President of Wärtsilä Marine and Executive Vice President at Wärtsilä Corporationremarked: “We are proud to have collaborated with Incat and Buquebus in launching the world’s largest battery-electric ship. Ferries play a vital role in meeting the growing demand for environmentally sustainable transport options, with ship electrification a key solution for enabling the sector to