The Electric Seaway

Providing a charging infrastructure network for the UK's south coast
Clean Maritime
The south coast of the UK has responded to the shift in maritime expectations over the past few years, with many new businesses and technology developments for clean and green vessels.
The Electric Seaway (TES) project, with its potential to serve as a model for future networks, aims to establish a network of charging infrastructure along the south coast. This unique network will feature 10 locations equipped with charging installations, including two sites with integrated battery energy storage solutions to address grid capacity challenges. Introducing a standardised approach to e-charging using current and planned fully marinised charging technology will overcome the significant barrier of limited grid capacity and advanced infrastructure provision. The installed chargers will supply increased power of up to 150 kW at 10 locations, with battery energy storage to be installed at two identified sites.
 
Many ports and harbours are considering e-vessels for their operational fleets, while private owners aim to reduce emissions in their leisure activities.
The world's first Electric Seaway will offer a range of solutions to meet the current and future needs of various locations. This will provide a comprehensive network of charging stations, creating a green corridor. There is no defined route that vessels must take, making this seaway a flexible and responsive network that supports both commercial and leisure activities.
The current and optimum future sites that will be explored through The Electric Seaway project
 

Project objectives

  • Create the infrastructure to power the region's growing fleet of electric vessels.
  • Target leisure and commercial vessels under 24m in size.
  • Support the Maritime 2050 decarbonisation goals.

  • Develop a battery and charger infrastructure.
  • Deploy environmental sensors to monitor the impact of the transition to electric vessels.
  • Create a business model and strategy that will enable a widescale deployment of marine charging infrastructure.
 

Working in partnership

Led by Aqua superPower, this consortium brings together partners from industry, local authorities and academia to deliver the network in two years with the support of Innovate UK and the Department for Transport. The Electric Seaway will be an essential part of the sector's ability to develop, build and retrofit vessels incorporating clean propulsion options using batteries with a significant shift forward in a reduction of emissions.
Aqua superPower will be supported by the members of the UK Harbour Masters' Association, site locations for energy storage systems in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council, and South Hams District Council, with leading industry partners in ZPN Energy.
Brixham
 

The University's role in the project

The University ensures environmental impacts and carbon reduction are monitored and fed back to policymakers for future planning. This will be achieved through:
The Electric Seaway project - sensor
  • Deployment of sensors – installing up to 16 sensors per site to ensure comprehensive data coverage.
  • Telemetry via Long Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN) – utilising LoRa radios in a LoRaWAN network for efficient telemetry and remote data collection.
  • Remote data collection – implementing robust mechanisms for the remote collection of environmental data.
  • Impact analysis – understanding the current environmental conditions and assessing the potential impact of e-vessels on these conditions.
  • Long-term data collection – establishing systems for the long-term collection and analysis of environmental data to track changes and trends over time.
 

People

Trailblazing clean maritime innovation
At Plymouth, we are among the UK’s leading proponents of clean maritime research, with a track record in consistently securing government funding through the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition.
Through engagement with business and the wider scientific community, we are co-creating ways of transforming this research into practical solutions to challenges faced by the marine and maritime sectors.
Clean Maritime

Centre for Decarbonisation and Offshore Renewable Energy

In response to climate change imperatives, we are bringing together a critical mass of leading research and expertise from across the University of Plymouth. Through co-creation and collaboration with partners from business, government and key communities from across the globe, the Centre aims to be a beacon for the University’s whole-system transdisciplinary approach to solutions-oriented research, accelerating sustainable developments in decarbonisation and renewable energy.
Centre for Decarbonisation and Offshore Renewable Energy
The Electric Seaway is part of the Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition Round 3 (CMDC3), which was announced in September 2022, funded by the Department for Transport and delivered in partnership with Innovate UK. As part of the CMDC3, the Department allocated £60 million to 19 flagship projects supported by 92 UK organisations to deliver real world demonstration R&D projects in clean maritime solutions. Projects will take place in multiple locations around the UK from as far north as the Shetland Isles and as far south as Cornwall.
The CMDC3 is part of the UK Shipping Office for Reducing Emission's (UK SHORE) flagship multi-year CMDC programme. In March 2022, the Department announced the biggest government investment ever in our UK commercial maritime sector, allocating £206 million to UK SHORE, a new division within the Department for Transport focused on decarbonising the maritime sector. UK SHORE is delivering a suite of interventions throughout 2022–2025 aimed at accelerating the design, manufacture and operation of UK-made clean maritime technologies and unlocking an industry-led transition to Net Zero.