AYK Energy, an innovator in marine battery solutions, has been selected by Finnish shipping company Wasaline to execute the largest vessel battery retrofit on a vessel. The landmark project will transform the propulsion system of Wasaline’s flagship ro-pax vessel, marking a decisive step in the decarbonisation of Baltic Sea shipping.
The project with see Andorra headquartered AYK install a 10.4MWh battery on the hybrid- electric Ropax ferry the Aurora Botnia which operates a daily service between Finland and Sweden. Built in 2021 the Aurora Botnia presently operates on dual-fuel LNG/biomass engines and 2.2 MWh batteries. The upgrade to a battery system nearly five times more powerful is expected to slash fossil energy use by around 10,000 MWh annually, cutting emissions by nearly a quarter each year.
AYK founder Chris Kruger confirmed the new AYK Pisces+ battery system will exceed the previous biggest retrofit on the Aida Prima cruise ship by about 500kWh.
Mr Kruger said: “AYK is extremely proud to be partnering with Wasaline as the provider of this advanced battery solution. Being recognised once again as a reliable and cost effective supplier is extremely gratifying. This project exemplifies AYK’s vision of bringing high quality, safe and cost-effective solutions to address our customers requirements for environmentally friendly transport. The transition to electric and hybrid vessels is accelerating, and the AYK/Wasaline partnership is an excellent example of how working together strategically can make the change happen.”
Mr Kruger said the system is scheduled to be delivered and installed by the end of 2025 at Turku Repair Yard in Finland enabling the Aurora Botnia to be operational again by January 2026. He said the batteries are Lithium Iron Phosphate (LFP) known for their safety and long lifespan compared to the more volatile Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC) batteries.
“AYK’s battery systems are built around safety,” he said. “We are one of the few manufacturers to exclusively use LFP and have developed a system where the LFP chemistry is safer and has comparable energy density to NMC.”
From the initial planning of Wasaline’s Aurora Botnia, the shipping line set the target of achieving fully carbon-neutral operations by 2030. Since Aurora Botnia began operations, Wasaline has cut carbon dioxide emissions by 35 per cent and since traffic began in 2013, carbon dioxide emissions have decreased by 70 per cent per voyage.
Peter Ståhlberg, Managing Director of Wasaline said: “We are continuously working to establish the Vaasa – Umeå route as a green shipping corridor. There’s growing demand for environmentally friendly transport in Europe. This means the entire transport chain can be carbon-neutral today. Expanding our battery capacity with AYK Energy is a major step that allows us to make our vessel even more sustainable. Our collaboration with Finland’s and the region’s energy clusters makes innovative solutions like this possible.”
The AYK battery systems will be built at AYK’s 5000 sqm automated manufacturing plant in in Zhuhai China which opened in 2023. The plant has a production capacity of 300MWH a year with the ability to expand to 1GWH.
The latest order comes as fast-growing AYK is seeing a surge in demand for its batteries across the maritime industry with the manufacturer supplying tugs, OSVs, superyachts, fishing vessels, work boats and even large container vessels as part of their power mix.
AYK this year successfully installed the biggest marine battery systems ever built, two 12 megawatt-hour (MWh) Orion+ batteries for Brittany Ferries hybrid electric vessels the Guillaume de Normandie and its sister ship Saint-Malo. The vessels were built at China Merchants Jinling Shipyard Weihai. AYK further struck a deal this year to supply a 6MWh battery for the world’s first battery-methanol tug for Svitzer.
