Auckland Transport's Low Emission Ferry Programme is bringing electric and electric-hybrid ferries to the harbour, and the fast shore charging that makes them work.
Auckland Ferry Electrification Programme
Auckland Transport is electrifying its ferry fleet on the Waitematā, replacing ageing diesel boats with electric and electric-hybrid vessels to improve services and cut emissions.
The ferries are custom-built in New Zealand, carry 200 to 300 passengers, and have low-drag, low-wash hulls with room for the bikes and scooters commuters bring aboard. Charging them fast sets the constraint: a ferry has only the ten to fifteen minutes of a passenger changeover to recharge, so the power comes from purpose-built charging at each terminal.
RCP works on the programme for Auckland Transport in contract management, project coordination and master programming, holding the interfaces between the civil, electrical and marine contractors, keeping the delivery milestones visible and filling the gaps where the workstreams meet, with ferry services kept running throughout.
Half Moon Bay was the first site delivered, and its charger now runs as New Zealand's first megawatt charging system for ferries, built on Vector high-voltage upgrades, a charger building prefabricated in New Plymouth and ABB power-conversion equipment. Downtown Ferry Terminal is the next phase, adding further charging berths to electrify more routes, with cable run beneath the historic concrete wharves of the central-city waterfront.
