Long Beach Gets World's First Hydrofoiling Electric Pilot Boat
The Belfast-based electric boatbuilder Artemis Technologies has sold a specially-adapted version of its hydrofoiling electric speedboat to Jacobsen Pilot Service, the pilotage provider for Port of Long Beach. Artemis launched the first vessel in the newly-designed EF-12 Pilot class in June 2026, and announced the first sale in a social media post on Wednesday.
Artemis says that the EF-12 is the first pilot boat in the world to combine electric propulsion and hydrofoil technology. The technologies are synergistic, the firm says: hydrofoiling gets the hull out of the water, reducing drag and boosting battery range. The heart of the design is a pair of combined hydrofoil-propeller-rudder units, which sit on struts below the centerline.
For busy pilots in need of swift transport, the design can hit 32 knots with four passengers aboard, and it has a range of up to 40 nautical miles at cruising speed - plus a quiet and smooth ride above the waves. During development, Artemis consulted with pilot boat operators from around the world to get feedback, and conducted a series of trials with Cork Pilots at the Port of Cork to perform early testing. The design of the hydrofoils' rudder system allows the operator a high degree of control over yaw, giving the pilot boat an advantage when making contact with the side of a ship's hull and then breaking away, according to Artemis.
At Long Beach, the EF-12 design will see considerable use and a high degree of public exposure. The San Pedro Bay port complex is the busiest container hub in the Western Hemisphere, and Jacobsen facilitates more than 7,000 vessel movements in and out of the harbor every year. For the operator, it will save the expense of 40,000 gallons of diesel per year - upwards of $200,000 at current prices - and will reduce CO2 emissions by 400 tonnes annually. For the port, it means a reduction in NOx, SOx and PM emissions, which are priority targets because of their health effects.
The Port of Long Beach is supporting the purchase of the Artemis pilot boat with funds from the state of California's Port and Freight Infrastructure Program. Long Beach holds $380 million in two grant awards from the program, and is using the funding to pursue zero-emissions initiatives and rail improvements.
World's Biggest Battery-Electric Ferry Enters Commercial Service
The Ecuadorian ferry operator Buquebus has begun commercial operations with the world's largest battery-powered ferry, the China Zorrilla, named after a regionally famous actress.
China Zorrilla is an aluminum fast-ferry constructed at Incat, a pioneer in the aluminum-multihull ferry space. After construction at Incat's yard in Tasmania, the vessel was loaded out on a heavy lift ship and transported to the Rio de la Plata.
Capable of carrying up to 225 vehicles and 2,100 passengers, China Zorrilla is larger and has a bigger battery bank than any other battery-electric vessel. The 130-meter ropax has a deadweight capacity of about 960 tonnes, and has enough spare internal volume to accommodate a massive duty-free retail space.
According to Wärtsilä, the supplier of her power and propulsion systems, the design challenge was to build a zero-emissions ferry that could make 25 knots on a 60-kilometer route, and would be capable of shallow-water operations. The solution included 41 MWh worth of battery capacity, eight electric propulsion motors and eight axial flow waterjets. A pierside DC charging system restores the batteries to readiness with about 40 minutes, and is part of the scheduled operation for each one-way trip.
The vessel is named for "China" Zorrilla (originally Concepción Matilde Zorrilla), a locally-famous actress who made her name in the Uruguayan and Argentinian theater scenes. She appeared in countless plays, movies and television shows from the 1950s up through at least 2007. She passed away in 2014.
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