Fullers and boat-making startup Vessev are testing what they call “the world’s first electric hydrofoiling tourism vessel” on Auckland’s Waitematā Harbour.

The VS-9 can hold 10 passengers.

Fullers boss Mike Horne sees it being booked ad-hoc by tourists for a jaunt to Waiheke or a thrill ride around the Harbour- but also as a stepping stone for a larger commuter boat.

Horne says the final fit-out will include a cabin top, a Learjet-like finish in its interior – and be a smooth ride thanks to the hydrofoiling technology designed by Team NZ, Oracle Racing and SailGP alumni.

“You’ll be able to talk on a cellphone or give a presentation at 20 knots, which you can’t on a regular boat,” the Fullers chief executive says. “It’ll be very stable.”

The zero-emission, carbon fibre laminate VS-9 has partial foiling from 12 knots, reducing pitch-and-roll motion and “takes off” to full-foiling mode waves at 18-19 knots.

If the VS-9 gains Maritime NZ certification in time for summer, Horne won’t be ordering another half-dozen 10-seaters.

Rather, he sees the smaller boat as a proof-of-concept. If all goes well, Fullers plans to work with Vessev on a 100-passenger, 19m version.

Horne says that could be hydrogen or electric-powered, and could be serving the Auckland-Gulf Harbour run (that is, on the open seas) within three years. Hydrofoils would not be used by Fullers in the inner harbour, where 200 and 300-person electric ferries are in the works.

The VS-9 was first tested on May 10, and has now been to Waiheke and back 13 times – with Vessev’s engineering whiz founder Max Olson (now the firm’s chief technology officer) taking the wheel as test driver.

$8 power per trip

Each return Auckland CBD-Waiheke trip cost $8 in charging, Vessev chief executive Eric Laakmann told the Herald.

A chase boat, “which was actually lighter” used $140 in petrol for the same trip.

Unlike the big electric ferries on the way next year (which will require $27.5m worth of multi-megawatt chargers) no new infrastructure is needed.

The VS-9 has been charged from a regular, three-phase 22kW charger at Orams Marine. A 90kW DC charger will give it 8 nautical miles of range per 10 minutes of charging, Laakman says. A portable 40kW charger will be bundled with the final product.

Mix of backers

The VS-9 features the logos of Vessev’s various financial backers.

They include EECA (the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Authority), which has chipped in $1.2 million from the Government’s Low Emission Transport Fund across three grants.

And also equity investors Icehouse Ventures (the largest shareholder, with a 27 per cent stake) and Sir Stephen Tindall’s K1W1, which owns 23 per cent of the company. (Smaller shareholders include Blackbird Ventures, Olson, Shasta Ventures, Port of Auckland and Laakmann.)

The fourth logo on the boat is for NetZero Maritime – the name Fullers gives its in-house clean tech development team. NetZero Maritime has also been reserved as an approved name for a possible future standalone firm.

Laakmaan – an American – was a development lead for the original Apple Watch.

He was in the midst of a sailing-around-the-world sabbatical when pandemic border closures forced an extended stay in Auckland.

There he ended up joining Olson at the firm then known as Seachange. He gained permanent residency last month after submitting an application that included non-standard support material in the form of a video of him on the VS-9, holding a New Zealand flag.

The VS-9 is due to be taken out of the water in July. Then it will go to Maritime NZ for certification in August.

Laakman says while no other boat of its electric, hydrofoiling design has certification anywhere in the world, Maritime NZ pre-approved the plans, helping to smooth the process. Regardless, being a first of its kind, he’s loathe to second-guess the timeline for commercial launch.

An update on the big stuff

Horne is still expecting the first of two 300-passenger hybrid electric ferries to be delivered by Whanganui’s Q-West in the first half of next year, with the second to follow around six months later.

While superchargers on piers are still a work-in-progress – and might not appear at CBD ferry terminal until mid to late next year – the hybrid’s diesel generators mean they’ll be able to operate for months, while Fullers waits for superchargers.

Horne says the hybrids could run for months on diesel only, even if it would not be a great outcome in the short term, in terms of emissions.

Read a broader update on the AT-driven electric ferry upgrade project here.

Vessev VS-9 tech specs:

Source: Vessev, Fullers

Chris Keall is an Auckland-based member of the Herald’s business team. He joined the Herald in 2018 and is the technology editor and a senior business writer.