Echandia has won an order from Knowledge Marine & Engineering Works to supply battery systems for two fully electric harbour tugs for Visakhapatnam Port Authority and V.O.C Port Authority in Tuticorin, according to Echandia.
The contract, announced on 3 July, will be the first Indian deployment of Echandia Core, the Swedish supplier’s lithium-titanium-oxide battery system.
The tugs are being developed under India’s Green Tug Transition Program. The battery systems are designed for a 15-year service life, matching the concession period of the vessels and removing the need for a planned mid-life battery replacement.
The tugs are scheduled to enter service in the second quarter of 2027. Navnautik Technical Services Pvt Ltd of Kolkata will design the vessels.
The award follows Echandia’s earlier Green Tug Transition Program project at Deendayal Port Authority’s Kandla Port.
Echandia’s LTO-based battery systems have also powered 23 Kochi Water Metro ferries since 2023.
Echandia senior strategist Rakshith Sachitanand said India is “a long-term market for Echandia” and that operational availability was a decisive factor for tug operators.
Echandia is a Swedish company headquartered in Bromma that develops and supplies battery systems for maritime applications.
Knowledge Marine & Engineering Works is an Indian maritime infrastructure company active in dredging, marine engineering, shipbuilding, ancillary port services, green tugs and inland waterways.
Navnautik Technical Services Pvt Ltd is an Indian naval architecture and marine engineering company based in Kolkata.