Tickets are on sale today for $195 each for a twice-daily 45-minute “hydroil experience” starting on January 29. The VS-9 is also being offered for a charter around the Hauraki Gulf for $2000.
Vessev and Fullers are working on a 100-person, 19m version, which will have commuter service potential. But unlike the 9m model just launched, which can charge at 0.8 nautical miles per minute from a regular marine power outlet, the larger model would need specialised charging infrastructure.
“This is the first time ever that a vessel of this type – certified electric hydrofoiling – has been delivered to a private operator for private service applications. That’s an enormous endorsement of the commercial potential of this technology,” Vessev chief executive Eric Laakmann told the Herald.
Swedish startup Candela, a close rival to Vessev, had a small electric hydrofoiling ferry go into commuter service in Stockholm and last week said its “P12″ would be used for a new service crossing Lake Tahoe in the US, with a launch date yet to be revealed.
Laakmann said Candela’s Stockholm pilot involved two public transport authorities rather than private commercial entities.
Auckland ferry commuters have been able to watch the Vessev ripping around the inner harbour during testing.
Laakmann says the VS-9 beat expectations by coping with waves of up to 1m.
The VS-9 was designed and built in Auckland by Vessev, with its hydrofoiling technology adapted from race-winning America’s Cup yachts, Fullers and Vessev say.
Inside the VS-9. Vessev has plans for a commuter service-friendly 100-seater.
Its battery-powered propulsion system uses about 55kW – the equivalent of 70HP – while cruising at 25 knots, Laackman says. He claims that’s unprecedented for a standing-height 9m vessel.
During recent trials, a return Auckland CBD-Waiheke trip cost $8 in charging, Laakmann told the Herald.
A chase boat, “which was actually lighter”, used $140 in petrol for the same journey.
Vessev’s mix of backers also includes Icehouse Ventures, Sir Stephen Tindall’s K1W1, Australasian VC firm Blackbird Ventures, US VC firm Shasta Ventures, founder and original CEO Max Olson (now chief technology officer) and Laakmann – an American who was development lead for the original Apple Watch before going on a sail-the-world sabbatical that saw him stranded in Auckland by Covid border closures; he never left.
Olson began with the big vision of electric ferries for the Cook Strait run. Laakmann says larger models are on the way, but he doesn’t have a timeline.
Fullers chief executive Mike Horne says his firm is committed to buying more electric “and hydrogen” vessels from Vessev and other players.
Horne’s company led the initial design and development of two 300-passenger hybrid commuter ferries. Both vessels are funded by Auckland Transport (AT)and NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi at a cost of around $20 million each and are earmarked for the Devonport-CBD run.
The hybrids have batteries as their primary power source, but can also run on backup diesel generators – a fallback that might prove useful given the slippage in AT’s mega charger timetime.
Vessev CEO Eric Laakmann was the development lead for the original Apple Watch in the US before going on a sail-the-world sabbatical. He was stranded in Auckland by Covid border closures and never left.
April 2025 is pencilled in as the delivery date for the first of the hybrids, which are being built by Q-West in Whanganui and incorporate HamiltonJet propulsion systems. The second is due in 2026.
Two 200-passenger fully electric ferries are also under construction by McMullen & Wing in Auckland, based on a design by EV Maritime. The AT-owned vessels will service the Half Moon Bay and Hobsonville runs. The latest schedule has the first vessel handed over to AT “in 2025″.
During recent trials, each return Auckland CBD-Waiheke trip cost $8 in charging, Vessev chief Eric Laakmann said. A chase boat, “which was actually lighter”, used $140 in petrol for the same journey.
Chris Keall is an Auckland-based member of the Herald’s business team. He joined the Herald in 2018 and is the technology editor and a senior business writer.
