Antwerp-Bruges Launches All-Electric Tug (video)

By Simon West

The Port of Antwerp-Bruges has launched Volta 1, Europe’s first all-electric tugboat.

The reverse stern drive (RSD) tug weighing 607 tons and measuring nearly 25 meters long has been developed alongside Dutch shipbuilder Damen and follows previous world firsts at Antwerp-Bruges such as the hydrogen-driven Hydrotug and the methanol-driven Methatug.

Powered by a 2,782 MWh battery, the fully emissions-free Volta 1 can operate for up to 12 hours and recharge in just two hours using a 1.5-megawatt (MW) charging station. The vessel has been designed with a double bow and a patented Twin Fin skeg and can be deployed for both forward and backward operations.

Its 70-ton towing capacity makes it as powerful as its diesel counterparts, the port said.

“The Volta 1 is a powerful example of our strategy to actively integrate sustainable technology into our operations,” said Jacques Vandermeiren, CEO of Port of Antwerp-Bruges. “As a global port, we are taking our responsibility to pull the maritime sector into the energy transition. The Volta 1, together with the Hydrotug, Methatug and RSD tugs, represents a tangible step towards a climate-neutral port by 2050.”

Volta 1 is part of Antwerp-Bruges’ wider renewal of its tugboat fleet and was launched alongside five other energy-efficient RSD tugs. The tug service accounts for some 85% of port-related CO2 emissions, it said.

Damen, which built the world’s first electric tugboat in 2022 in New Zealand, began construction of the six vessels two years ago in Vietnam. The tugs arrived in Antwerp in late 2024 after a journey of more than 10,000 kilometers.

Watch a video of the launch of Volta 1: