e5 Project

The e5 Project (commercially registered as e5 Lab Inc. and alternatively known as the e5 Consortium) is a Japanese partnership with the purpose of developing renewably-powered commercial ships. Their first adopted projects are their tanker and tug designs, powered by a mixture of electricity and hydrogen cells.[1]

e5 Lab Inc.
IndustryCommercial ship design
FoundedAugust 2019 (2019-08)
Headquarters
Japan
Key people
Satoshi Ichida (CEO)
Tomoaki Ichida (President)
ServicesPlanning and design of electric/hydrogen cell merchant ships
WebsiteOfficial website

History

The e5 Project consists of a partnership of companies including:[2]

The name "e5" refers to the five focus points of the partnership: electrification, environment, evolution, efficiency, and economics.[3][1]

Marine broadband project

In November 2019, e5 announced a collaboration with SoftBank Group to develop a marine broadband network. In the first trial, planned for January through May of 2020, ships would "be equipped with flat antennas and local wireless stations", before a longer trial between January 2021 and March 2022 in which SoftBank and OneWeb will test a new satellite communication system designed to develop autonomous or remotely-controlled ships.[4]

Ship design projects

Tanker
e5 Tanker
Class overview
Builders: Asahi Tanker Co. Ltd.
Building: 2
General characteristics
Tonnage: 499 tonnes
Length: 62 metres (203 ft)
Beam: 10.30 metres (33.8 ft)
Draft: 4.15 metres (13.6 ft)
Installed power: 3.5 MWh battery
Propulsion:
Speed: 11 knots
Capacity: 1,300 cubic metres (46,000 cu ft)

The e5 Tanker aims to be the first fully electric oil tanker, powered by a 3.5 MWh battery which is projected to "run non-stop for 10 hours on a half-capacity battery".[5] The ship will include a high level of automation[6] and will be charged using wind and solar energy to further reduce emissions.[5]

Asahi Tanker Co. are currently constructing two e5 Tankers, the first of which will be completed by March 2022 and the second in March 2023.[2][7]

Tug
e5 Tug
Class overview
General characteristics
Installed power: Hydrogen cell plant, lithium ion battery
Propulsion:
Speed: 14 knots

e5 Lab is currently developing a tugboat that would run on a mixture of electricity and hydrogen fuel cells.[1] It will operate in Yokohama Port and Kawasaki Port.[8]

Car carrier

The proposed car carrier would be powered by a mixture of liquefied natural gas and hydrogen cell generated electricity. Unlike e5 Lab's other projects, it would not be emission free, but would operate under reduced emissions.[9]

References
  1. "e5 Lab". e5 Ship (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 2020-06-02. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  2. Lambert, Fred (2020-05-22). "Massive electric oil tankers are coming - oh the irony". Electrek. Archived from the original on 2020-05-30. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  3. "Japanese Companies to Launch First Zero-Emission Electric Tanker". The Maritime Executive. 2020-05-22. Archived from the original on 2020-06-06. Retrieved 2020-05-25.
  4. "e5 Lab and SoftBank Corp. to Begin Jointly Studying Marine Broadband Services that Use Next-generation Communication Satellites" (PDF). e5 Ship. 2019-11-28. Retrieved 2020-06-26.
  5. Brownell, Bradley (2020-05-22). "The Japanese Are Developing An Awesome 3.5 MWh Battery-Powered Ocean Freighter". Jalopnik. Archived from the original on 2020-05-23. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  6. "Asahi Tanker decided to build two electric tankers equipped with lithium-ion batteries for the first time in the world". Asahi Tanker Co., Ltd. 2020-03-27. Archived from the original on 2020-05-26. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  7. "Asahi Tanker orders world's first zero-emission electric propulsion bunker tankers". Manifold Times. 2020-03-31. Archived from the original on 2020-04-23. Retrieved 2020-05-26.
  8. ""e5 Tug" – electric tug powered by battery and hydrogen fuel cell" (PDF). e5 Ship. 2019-10-29. Retrieved 2020-06-26.
  9. "MOL and e5 Lab Launch Study on Hydrogen Hybrid Pure Car Carrier" (PDF). e5 Ship. 2019-12-17. Retrieved 2020-06-26.
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