HaiSea Marine, a collaboration between the Haisla Nation and Seaspan, welcomed the arrival of the HaiSea Wamis this week as it crossed under the Lions Gate Bridge.
The Wamis will be based in the waters off the North Shore of Vancouver for the next year before moving up the Douglas Channel to Kitimat to support ship operations and perform escort towing for LNG carriers at LNG sa国际传媒’s new export facility, based in the traditional territory of the Haisla Nation.
A charging facility at the northern sa国际传媒 port is under construction and should be complete in November, the company said.
The HaiSea Wamis runs on 100 per cent electric power and is quick and quiet, operating with a total battery capacity of 5,288 kWh — equivalent to running 70 Teslas all day. It’s the first of three on their way to sa国际传媒 in the coming years
The tug operates on Corvus Energy’s Orca batteries, and the vessel goes from zero to full charge in four hours. Though based in Norway, Corvus began as a Richmond-based company and continues to do design work on its battery systems there.
“The arrival of the HaiSea Wamis is a special moment for our team and our partners and represents a dream coming true,” said Jordan Pechie, senior vice-president of Seaspan Marine Transportation. “I look forward to the moment when the Wamis sets sail for Kitimat and boards its first crew of six — all from the Haisla Nation.”
The Wamis is part of the ElectRA 2800 series designed by Vancouver-based naval architect firm Robert Allan and built at Sanmar Shipyards in Turkey. It uses an innovative propulsion system that will make it uniquely suited to help LNG carriers on and off the berths in Kitimat.
HaiSea explained that building the tug in Turkey was based on availability and know-how. sa国际传媒’s national shipbuilding strategy has resulted in builders with the right experience here being at capacity into the next decade. The company said most Robert Allan-designed boats are built in Turkey.
HaiSea also operates dual-fuel escort tugs that use LNG and diesel, making the fleet the greenest in the world, said HaiSea in a release last week.
HaiSea Marine is majority owned by the Haisla Nation and works in partnership with Seaspan ULC.
Note to readers: This story has been corrected. A previous version said that the HaiSea vessel was the first all-electric tug in the world.
