Aren't most ships of a larger size diesel-electric already? Seems like batteries just got good enough to replace the generator. Also, I wonder just how long it takes to charge that much battery power.
this post was submitted on 15 Mar 2026
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It doesn't matter how long it takes to charge if they can be replaced at the ports it operates at. The point being, the entire time it's at sea, there are some replacement batteries charging up waiting for it once it docks. These kinds of vehicles are perfect for cyclical trips like that, it just takes better planning and logistics. A Chinese company is already doing it with autonomous mining trucks successfully. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T4qbjPN9Sao
Imagine all the crude oil that thing can carry.
Are electric yachts a thing?
Sails boats definitely. Day cruisers /small motor boats also. I think the big motor yachts less so at the moment. They demand range in thousands of nautical miles which is tough.
Sails boats definitely
Intuitively, would that be a result of their primary source of propulsion being independent of fuel source? You'd need electricity for amenities and instruments, and probably a backup motor in case the wind doesn't play along, but I genuinely have no knowledge of how much you'd need for that.
I mean like 20-30 ft ocean worthy sail boats. Something you'd live on for a year between jobs
20-30ft sailboats are hardly what you think of as ocean going or “blue water” boats. Most people cross ocean on larger boats over 30ft.
sailboats are increasingly easy to electrify. Tho I have no data on how many people do it. There are huge benefits in going electric and the tech is becoming quite mature
That said most boats you will see out there owned by real humans (not charter companies) are 30+ years old with 30+ years old motor in them. Sailors rarely replace the motor unless they absolutely have to.
China will be the world leader in renewable energy. They had a plan and left everyone else in the dust.
Will be? As far as I can see, they already are, by some considerable margin.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electricity_sector_in_China?wprov=sfla1
I think there's lots of positive development but no, definitely not the leaders in anything other than coal consumption right now
It's not about how much energy they are producing domestically from renewables, but hiw far advanced their technology is in fields like solar, wind, and in relation to this article, batteries. They've made huge strides in increasing charge density, reducing weight, and bringing down costs, all of which puts them in a commanding place in the renewables field.
This is exactly the point.
That's insane. Those batteries must the size of an apartment building.
The article says the batteries are in 10 shipping containers, so one charging option is to simply swap uncharged for charged, like a ginormous flashlight.
I didn't clock that "containerized" meant "in shipping containers". That sounds much bigger than I estimated.
Also never heard of shipping container batteries, but I bet/hope that becomes the standard. There could be networks of solar/wind farms spanning the ocean, charging batteries that ships swap out during their voyage. The more stations, the less battery weight ships have to lug around. Trains could use them too. That's cool.
It is such a wasted opportunity that EVs didn't end up internally standardizing batteries to some sensibly sized modules.
When the battery pack is an unit that weighs hundred of pounds and costs thousands, they buyer gets well founded anxiety on whether these will be available for earlier models or any by emerging manufacturers.
If EV batteries had even a few different types of interoperable chunks it would be quite a bit better.
I mean, a standard petrol car may have a whole engine worth ≈$1000, expensive parts a few hundred and of manageable size.
The logistics (a single EV battery pack will trigger stringent dangerous goods shipping restrictions in most jurisdictions) and ROI of battery packs as whole units just do not mesh with the aftermarket economy, and I think it should have been given more thought to ensure and improve the long term sustainability of EVs.
I didn't clock that "containerized" meant "in shipping containers".
Same, I figured they were running on _Dock_er.
Great, its Christmas morning, you excitedly unwrap you present. It's a new container ship! Then you read the dreaded phrase on the box: "Batteries not included. Requures 10 container batteries". You rummage around in the odds-and-ends draw in the kitchen (we've all got one), but you can only find 9. Christmas is ruined.
ETA: This is actually a very cool design. Being able to swap the batteries with normal cargo handling facilities will be a huge boon and keep these ships moving.
It says the batteries are in 10 shipping containers. One TEU containers has an internal volume of 33 cubic metres, so 330 in total.
Even a small two-storey, four-unit apartment building is around 1000 cubic metres in total volume, so the batteries are only about a third of an apartment building at most.
total capacity is 19,000kWh, an EV battery is ~100kWh, so maybe round to around 200 car battery-sized batteries. Maybe not an apartment building, but they'd probably make a two bedroom feel cramped.
Ten TEU containers is 1,600 sq ft (40ft sq) with an 8.5ft ceiling. I think it's a bit bigger than you're imagining.
Wild, that’s roughly the size of the houses around me, just maybe a couple feet taller. That’s a lot of energy.
I don't think so but the fire will be amazing.
How competitive is rhe range?
I believe the article mentioned that this will be specialized for short-haul routes. Pretty common way to start off EV adoption in general