New catamaran on Lake Lucerne powered by hybrid propulsion from Siemens
Lake Lucerne. The Lake Lucerne shipping operator Schifffahrtsgesellschaft des Vierwaldstättersees (SGV) AG commissioned an exciting new addition to its fleet in May 2018: the catamaran MS Bürgenstock, designed and built by Shiptec AG, has been running an hourly service carrying up to 300 passengers between Lucerne and Kehrsiten-Bürgenstock since May 26. The modern hybrid electric propulsion system used in the BS Bürgenstock was supplied by Siemens, and enables the use of electric-only propulsion for 50 percent of the ship’s total journey time, saving the operator around 55 percent in fuel consumption and maintenance costs.
The new catamaran is affectionately known by locals as the ”hybrid speedster” – in part because the MS Bürgenstock is currently the fastest vessel on Lake Lucerne. This elegant catamaran is 38 meters long and over 10 meters wide, taking around 30 minutes for the crossing at a maximum speed of 35 kilometers an hour (just under 19 knots) – depending on weather conditions. Not only speedy and elegant, the MS Bürgenstock is primarily an environmentally friendly and quiet addition to traffic on the lake – largely due to the Siship
Ecoprop propulsion system from Siemens. The battery propulsion, supplied as a plug-and-play solu- tion, means that 50 percent of the ship’s travel is exclusively electrically powered, producing no noise. The batteries are charged while the ship is using its diesel propulsion system, with the electric motor serving as a generator. Apart from the comfortable passenger experience and environmental benefits, the ferry operator SGV AG also profits from up to a 55 percent reduction in fuel and maintenance costs compared to conventional combustion engineonly ships.
© Martin Wünsch
