Electric Thames

Project Data

Start date:

End date:

Budget:

Summary

Electric Thames is an innovation aimed at transforming the maritime sector by drastically reducing carbon emissions. By leveraging flexibility services to reduce peak demand, the project will unlock additional network capacity, with electric vessels supplying power back to the grid during high-demand periods to help balance the load.

What is the project about?

Electric Thames is a project aimed at transforming the maritime sector by drastically reducing carbon emissions, addressing critical challenges around energy demand, infrastructure deployment, and grid impact, and delivering a pathway toward clean-powered vessels. Currently, most vessels, docks and ports on the Thames rely on fossil fuels, but this is changing as the river’s economy begins to decarbonise. Previous decarbonisation efforts have treated marine and network requirements separately, creating a risk that the growing energy demand along the Thames could lead to significantly higher decarbonisation costs.

To support electrification, suitable charging infrastructure will need to be developed to facilitate the integration of electric vessels and Vessel-to-Grid (V2G) flexibility services. When moored, operators of electric vessels could participate in flexibility markets, feeding surplus power back into the grid during peak demand periods. Additionally, floating battery barges could be charged overnight when electricity is cheaper, and moved to areas of high demand, supporting the network while minimising reinforcement costs.

By working alongside stakeholders from both the marine and energy industries, Electric Thames will map out the future of maritime transport in the central Thames area, exploring the potential benefits of V2G charging. This initiative will not only help displace the current fossil fuel-based fleet, reducing CO2 emissions, but also unlock network capacity, offer financial benefits to users, and contribute to the creation of a more sustainable energy system.

How we’re doing it

The project will create an integrated energy system and business case which accounts for the impacts of decarbonising vessels, docks and quays.

We will do this by:

Designing the technical solutions for vessel charging shore power and flexibility services
Engaging with the identified operators to discuss the duty cycle of required operations and review alternatives to reduce, where possible, power demand and energy storage requirements
Identifying potential locations that will enable clean operation of the Thames. Validated with the PLA to ensure that it aligns with their decarbonisation strategy
Agreeing to business models that are investment ready and meet user needs, incorporating the expertise of project partners and key stakeholders
Developing a Cost Benefit Assessment based on the preferred business model(s) and performing financial analysis in preparation for a demonstrator
Holding detailed discussions with key users to ensure engagement at trial stage. The business case and ‘Green Corridor’ approach will be refined through dissemination and validation with stakeholders
Developing a roadmap for widespread adoption of clean maritime solutions, incorporating the needs of other users.

What makes it innovative

Our approach is ground breaking as it introduces the first clean maritime planning framework that integrates network requirements with the needs of marine users, Local Authorities and other key stakeholders. Traditional decarbonisation strategies for waterways would require significant expansion of energy infrastructure at multiple exit points. However, maritime, Local Authorities and Distribution Network Operators (DNOs) typically plan in isolation, which can delay the decarbonisation process. When planning is done separately, marine users are less likely to invest in assets that enable clean operations, thus hindering the achievement of the Thames’ 2040 decarbonisation target.

Electric Thames aims to accelerate progress by addressing these challenges in a unified way. This will include identifying the most effective route to decarbonise Thames traffic through electrification and exploring the potential of hydrogen. We will also investigate the use of ‘floating batteries’ to charge and discharge at different times and locations to alleviate network constraints, as well as explore grid-scale batteries to provide flexible, high-speed charging for vessels, ensuring resilient operations. Additionally, we will conduct a detailed engineering design of the vessel requirements and charging infrastructure necessary for electrification and bi-directional charging, ensuring that we can meet the energy needs of the future while supporting the clean transition of maritime transport.

What we’re learning

During Discovery, we worked closely with vessel operators, quay owners and the PLA to understand their needs and incorporate it into our approach. We learnt that:

There is strong support among marine users for the project, particularly in B2G as this can potentially offset the costs required for new infrastructure
The absence of a unified approach to electrification is seen as a key challenge
There are challenges associated with infrastructure development around the quays, as many sites are in protected areas of cultural significance.

At Alpha, we have highlighted potential obstacles, such as the retrofitting existing vessels with batteries or hydrogen fuel cells.

On top of this, we are looking into the demand for charging infrastructure. For operators whose vessels are in constant use, ensuring there is a large enough battery to power them throughout the day is critical. By engaging with vessel operators and analysing vessel traffic data, we are gaining insight into the operational patterns of the different types of vessels.

Share your ideas

If you have an idea that could reshape or revolutionise the way we work, we want to hear from you.

Submit an idea

Electric Thames

On this page

Project Data