B-C Ferries has ordered four more battery electric-hybrid ferries from a Dutch shipyard, at a cost of 200-million dollars. The ferry corporation says all four vessels will be capable of running entirely on battery power — as soon as technology matures to make electricity in the quantities required. In the meantime, the ships — earmarked for smaller runs along northeastern Vancouver Island, as well as the link between Nanaimo and Gabriola Island — will rely on a low sulphur diesel hybrid system. Two similar “Island Class” ferries, capable of carrying at least 47 vehicles and up to 450 passengers, have already completed sea trials and will arrive in B-C from the Netherlands in January, while the newly ordered ships are expected to go into service by 2022.
