Brisbane-based shipbuilder Aus Ships Group is building an electric ferry in collaboration with Swedish marine and industrial engine manufacturer Volvo Penta, which is due to be commissioned by the end of the year. Further down Australia's east coast, the New South Wales government has given, another Australian shipbuilder the green light to begin building a trial 24-metre battery electric ferry later this year. Image: Aus Ships Group, electric ferry to be built in Brisbane.Firstly, the electric ferry being built in the Queensland capital, Brisbane, with Volvo Penta, will be an 18-metre vessel capable of transporting 80 passengers. The silent and emission-free vessel will feature a twin installation of Volvo Penta’s IPS450E electric propulsion system, delivering 250 kW per driveline and combining a 460 kWh onboard battery pack with solar panels.Financial support for the Brisbane project is coming from the Australia-Singapore Low Emissions Technologies (ASLET) initiative to the tune of 2 million Australian dollars. The ASLET initiative is funded by the Australian and Singaporean governments and co-delivered by Australia’s national science agency, the CSIRO, and the Maritime Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) to support the development of maritime decarbonisation solutions.Aus Ships is currently under contract for fleet replacement programs through 2029. While this project initially involves a single vessel, the project is designed as a scalable platform for future deployment across Australian waterways. The partners’ ambitions include developing a fleet of similar ferries serving key routes along the most populous region of the east coast of Australia, including Brisbane and Sydney. Tommy Ericson, Director Aus Ships, says, “This is about creating a scalable model that can be replicated across the region.”Sydney has been trying to get electric ferries in the famous Australian harbour for some time. The New South Wales government yesterday also gave the green light to another Australian shipbuilder, Shipyard Richardson Devine Marine, from Australia’s island state of Tasmania, to build a new 24-metre battery-electric ferry that will be trialled for 12 months from early 2028. The NSW government says the vessel is likely to service the new Sydney Fish Markets route when it enters passenger service in 2029. The government has not revealed further details of the ferry’s propulsion systems other than that it will be battery-electric.Minister for Transport John Graham said: “The first trial of an electric ferry on Sydney Harbour is an important moment for our iconic ferry fleet, which will transition from diesel propulsion over coming years, informed by this first vessel. This Northern Beaches-designed, Australian-built ferry will provide a quieter ride and cleaner air on the Harbour,” he noted.The NSW government says the electric trial will provide valuable insights as the NSW Government considers the wider transition away from diesel-powered ferries . This has been some time in coming. In 2024, the (previous) NSW state government announced that Sydney’s fleet of 40 diesel-powered ferries would be replaced with Australian-made, electric or hydrogen-powered vessels by 2035. The trial was supposed to start early this year, but it will now begin in 2028, two years later.While a little late off the starting block, Australia now has two home-grown shipbuilders producing electric ferries on the island continent down under.volvopenta.com, nsw.gov.au