Electric ferries enter service on North Sea Canal

News

Electric ferries are entering service on round-the-clock services crossing Amsterdam’s North Sea Canal, replacing the existing diesel-powered fleet that dates back to the 1930s.

The new ferries have been ordered by Amsterdam’s public transport company, Gemeentelijk vervoerbedrijf (GVB), as it transitions toward becoming an emission-free transport company.

GVB will deploy the electric ferries on three North Sea Canal routes that transport over 350,000 cars a year. The ferries will operate day and night with a three-minute window for battery charging after each 20-minute round trip.

The contract for constructing the fully automated charging stations was awarded to BAM Infra Rail, which is part of BAM Group. To ensure safe, efficient charging and optimise battery life, the 750V DC supplied by the chargers must be unaffected by fluctuations in the power grid. ABB was approached to provide the technology to convert the AC grid voltage to a stable DC supply.

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ABB delivered three ACS880 supply modules, with power conversion based on integrated-gate bipolar transistor (IGBT) technology, which ensures stable DC output with minimal grid distortion by reacting to network events and compensating for voltage drops.

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