Maersk trials electric charging buoy

Tests of an electric charging buoy that doubles as a safe mooring point have been announced by Maersk Supply Service (MSS) for electricity firm Orsted’s offshore wind farm service vessels.

The plan will mean the vessel can use electricity to reduce traditional marine fossil fuels. It will be trialled in the second half of 2021 with overnight power supplied to the vessel.

Developed by MSS, the firm hope the solution can apply to a variety of maritime contexts. It charges a small battery or hybrid electric vessel and also power to larger vessels. The company claim that all emissions can be eliminated when the buoy is in use.

The solution will now go through technical certification and subject to the trial will then be commercially scaled-up with the potential to remove significant levels of fossil fuels from the maritime sector through allowing idling vessels to use renewable electricity from the buoy.

Through the project, MSS plans to remove 5.5 million tonnes of CO2 from global maritime operations at sea to complement the increase in charging opportunities in ports. The buoy works either as a mooring point outside of ports, within offshore wind farms or near to such facilities.

Orsted will make the design publicly available in order for other companies to utilise the concept across the sector.

Head of operations at Orsted Offshore, Mark Porter, said: “Orsted has set the ambitious target of having carbon neutral operations in 2025, which includes the operations of our offshore wind farms. Technical and commercial innovation is central to Orsted’s ability to provide real, tangible solutions to achieve our operational ambitions – and we need our partners’ support.”