Maersks giant marine battery to improve vessel performance

In December 2019, a container with a 600 kWh battery system manufactured in Odense, Denmark, by the system integrator and turnkey supplier Trident Maritime Systems will be installed on the Maersk ship Maersk Cape Town in Singapore.

Initially, this will be done as part of a test that will monitor how much the battery system can improve the ship’s performance and reliability while reducing overall CO2 emissions. According to Maersk, ships that rely solely on energy from batteries are still years away from being a technically- and economically viable option.

While the battery system cannot operate the entire Maersk Cape Town alone, it can instead help improve the efficiency of the generators on board. By using the generators more optimally and turning them off when they are not needed, the ship’s total fuel consumption can be reduced at the same time.

The battery module can support the ship’s generators with up to 1,800 kVA extra energy if rapid changes in the ship’s electrical load are needed. It is thus capable of providing the ship with the extra energy that can provide safety at sea.

The marine battery will charge from t....