From fast ferries to electric ships: How a Tasmanian company is helping reshape global shipping

Right now, the world’s largest fully battery-electric ship sits idle in the Derwent River in Hobart – not because there’s anything wrong with it, but because of the war in the Middle East.

The 130-metre China Zorrilla, a vessel many in global shipping once thought was impossible to build, is waiting for a heavy lift transport ship to arrive so it can be put into service between Buenos Aires and Uruguay.

But that ship is now stuck in the Persian Gulf, unable to pass through the Straits of Hormuz.

For Incat founder and chairman Robert Clifford, the ship’s maker, there’s both frustration and urgency in seeing the giant electric ferry stuck alongside his Hobart shipyard.

At 83, the Tasmanian shipbuilding pioneer is already looking beyond the China Zorrilla to the next generation of even larger battery-electric ferries now rolling through Incat’s production line, including three new vessels being built for Danish operator Molslinjen.

It’s a remarkable achievement for a family-run Tasmanian company that built its global reputation making some of the world’s fastest aluminium ferries.

After decades focused on speed, Incat is now helping redefine the future of global shipping using its expertise in aluminium shipbuilding.

That’s because the key to making battery-electric ferries commercially viable, Clifford argues, is weight; if steel ships, which are much heavier vessels, were to go electric, they would need a massive amount of extra electricity.

“If it’s a third the weight, it’s about a third the power required to move it, and that’s so important with electricity,” Clifford tells Renew Economy in a special episode of the weekly SwitchedOn Australia podcast (to be published later on Wednesday)

“Lightweight has meant we built fast ships in the past, but it also means we can build more economical ships now,” Clifford says.

For passengers, Clifford says travelling on an electric ferry the size of the China Zorrilla is noticeably different.

“It’s remarkably quiet … You look out the window and you suddenly realize the ship’s moving. You don’t have any feeling of it moving.”

Powered by more than 40 megawatt-hours of batteries, the China Zorrilla was built for South American operator Buquebus and is designed to carry 2,100 passengers and 225 vehicles at speeds of around 25 knots.

But building the largest battery electric vessel of any kind was just one challenge. To be commercially viable, large electric ferries need ultra-fast charging systems capable of turning ships around quickly enough to complete multiple crossings a day.

The charging infrastructure now being installed by Buquebus in Argentina and Uruguay is massive by almost any standard. Incat say it will be capable of charging the China Zorrilla in less than an hour.

“In Uruguay, they’re putting two 15 megawatt plugs in place, so they’ll be charging at 30 megawatts at a time. That’s an awful lot of electricity,” Clifford says.

To put that in perspective, when Incat charged the vessel during testing in Hobart, it took nearly a week: “In Hobart, we only have about two megawatts available.”

Incat’s next three electric ferries for Molslinjen are expected to charge in around 30 minutes and be capable of speeds up to 38 knots. They’re expected to reduce 132,000 tonnes of CO₂ emissions every year on Danish routes between Aarhus-Odden and Ebeltoft-Odden.

Clifford admits that not all ports will have the fast-charging infrastructure or the electricity supply to sustain large battery electric ferries, which is why Incat is also building some hybrid vessels.

But Clifford says these vessels are being designed so their diesel systems can eventually be replaced entirely by batteries as charging infrastructure and battery technology improve.

“I’m not happy with hybrid, but in the short term we have little choice.”

Clifford argues the economics of building electric vessels are rapidly changing, driven by increasing fossil fuel costs and diesel taxes, regulatory pressure to reduce carbon emissions, and increasingly nervous financiers.

“To finance a diesel-powered ship today it’s very difficult because the financiers are worried about what are you going to do with a ship in five or 10 years’ time. So the finance industry is driving it.”

The commercial viability of the China Zorrilla will also be boosted by devoting the entire middle level of the ferry to duty free shopping, 2300 square metres, making it the largest retail space in the world.

Although Incat built its reputation on building fast, lightweight vessels, the economics of speed are also changing.

“Speed is not the most economical way of travel. Coming down to 25 knots takes perhaps only a quarter the power that it takes to do 50 knots.”

That shift is helping open up a far larger market for Incat than the high-speed ferry niche it once occupied.

Clifford points to routes across the English Channel, Irish Sea and Baltic Sea where operators increasingly care more about fuel savings and emissions than shaving minutes off journey times.

“Previously, electric ferries have been limited to short, low-speed routes. What we’re delivering now is a new class of vessel – high-speed, high-capacity, low-emission ferries capable of operating on some of the world’s busiest routes.”

Clifford believes battery technology is improving so rapidly that electric ferries capable of travelling distances of more than 300 kilometres are likely within a decade.

“There’s no doubt that the time will come when a Bass Strait [crossing] is absolutely logical to be electric.”

While Clifford’s bigger vision stretches well beyond Tasmania, he believes the state is uniquely placed to help lead one of the biggest industrial transformations shipping has seen in generations.

“As the world moves toward electrification at sea, Tasmania has a genuine opportunity to lead.”

Clifford says the market opportunity for electric ferries is enormous and, to meet the surging global demand, Incat plans a major expansion of its Hobart operations, including a third production hall.

“Just how large is hard to say at the moment, but quite literally, all these steel ships that are running diesel and other fossil fuels at the moment have to be changed, and they have to be changed fairly quickly in the next five to 10 years.”

Clifford predicts that within the decade Incat will be able to build as many as one battery electric ship a month, although doing so would require a workforce of around 10,000 people.

Currently, though, Incat is looking for an additional 200 aluminium welders and fitters: “We have a massive employment problem at the moment, getting enough people.”

Clifford acknowledges that in the future Incat will face competition from China, which is already building aluminium ferries.

“They are perfectly capable of building more and better, bigger [electric ferries]. They will be a serious competitor. There’s no question of that.”

But he maintains the quality of China’s builds doesn’t yet match Incat’s. He also dismisses alternative-fuelled commercial ferries like hydrogen and ammonia as costly distractions.

“All of those fuels take a lot of electricity to make, so why not put that electricity straight into the battery.”

Note: To hear the full interview with Robert Clifford, tune into the SwitchedOn Australia podcast when it’s released on Wednesday 27 May 2026.

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